There appears to be a link between the health of the property market in the Thames Valley and the performance at large of the UK economy.
Perhaps that is not surprising because the region houses so many technology companies at the cutting edge of the economy. The pace has increased as the government plays its part through improvements to transport.
These are long term changes that will help ensure the health of the region. In particular the arrival of Crossrail begins a massive widening of the area’s access to the rest of the country, enhanced by the rail link from Heathrow to Reading and the large scale investment in the railway station in the town.
Now there is the upgrading of the M4 to a ‘smart’ motorway to add capacity to the road system. Meanwhile, in West London the market thrives and rents are rising. So far, so good but the problem of a shortage of prime buildings is rising as the market improves, creating a need for substantial speculative development. Some places, such as Oxfordshire and West London are getting new stock and the big players, such as SEGRO, are alive to the problem.
This is a national problem and the question is whether the developers can provide sufficient new space before supply constraints damage the economic recovery. That, surely, is the question for this year.