The Office Market Is Tightening — Don’t Get Caught Without Options| Chris Aquilina Explains

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I interview Chris Aqualina, a tenant-rep / occupier adviser at **Spring4, who helps companies navigate leases, relocations, renewals, break clauses, rent reviews and dilapidations — plus the fit-out journey that follows.

Here is what we discussed.

Office moves are slow, expensive, and full of hidden traps
Especially break clauses and end-of-lease liabilities. A “simple” relocation can easily be months of sourcing, negotiation, legal, then fit-out.

London demand is “solid”, but supply is the real problem
Development has been constrained since Brexit uncertainty, then Covid, then high construction costs — which is pushing rents up hard (and potentially tightening vacancy significantly in the next few years).

Flight to quality is real (because hybrid changed the power dynamic)
Employers want people back. Employees will only come back if the workplace is better than home — which means reliable tech, functional rooms, good acoustics, and less “beanbag theatre”.

Cat A vs Cat B vs managed vs serviced
We explore the spectrum from plug-and-play serviced offices to Cat A shells requiring full fit-out, and how landlords are increasingly offering Cat B/spec fit-outs to reduce tenant friction — but with trade-offs (you inherit someone else’s design).

What employees actually want is boring… and that’s the point
People want frictionless meetings: walk in, press a button, join a call. If AV/IT doesn’t work, the office loses to home instantly.

Practical advice: plan early + bake in the right flexibility
Think at least a year out, use experienced advisers, and avoid “buying flexibility you don’t need”. A key concept discussed is protecting optionality at lease end (so you’re not “over a barrel”).