FRESH supply of office space fell 30-35 per cent year-on-year in 2020 across major cities mainly on lower demand because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to property consultants JLL and Savills. While JLL India reported that new supply of office space across seven major cities declined 30 per cent to 36.34 million sq ft in 2020 from 51.62 million sq ft in the previous year, the UK-based Savills said fresh supply dropped to 30.6 million sq ft from 47.1 million sq ft across six big cities.
New office space supply was less impacted than the demand, which fell by around 45-50 per cent with corporates deferring their expansion plan and adopting work-from-home policy for employees. The supply was also hit due to the nationwide lockdown that brought all construction activities to a standstill during April-May.