Wherever we look the commercial property market the Thames Valley appears to be in good health, There are many fundamental reasons for this, not least being a recent study by a cities research organisation that local economies gain from being near dynamic cities. In the case of the Thames Valley it is not so much a city, as a string of vibrant towns such as Slough, Reading, Maidenhead and others-all linked by a good transport system of road and rail.
There is also the vital role of Heathrow which will play a bigger regional role as the third runway approaches.
What is interesting is how all the centres share in this process, at varying speeds as one town pulls in new occupiers or gets new development. Here we can cite Slough where there is such a major scheme – The Future Works - which will have a considerable impact.
Of course Slough has the advantage of a network of headquarters of global companies and the ever-successful Slough Trading Estate.
As the Knight Frank and Savills surveys of the region underline, there has been a strong market for some time and the first half of this year has continued it. So we have a situation where new development has not kept pace with demand for some years.