Premium Offices Pull Ahead as Owners Rethink Workplaces

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Charter Hall, GPT, Dexus and IFM Investors see tenant experience and wellness as increasingly important to premium office demand.

Dexus is testing reusable turnkey fitouts to reduce capital costs, waste, downtime and incentives across successive leases.

IFM expects AI-related growth to favor Prime and A-grade offices with strong amenities even as lower-grade submarkets face pressure.

CBRE's discussion with four leading Australian office owners shows how premium buildings are being repositioned around experience, service, fitouts and AI. Executives from Charter Hall, GPT, Dexus and IFM Investors see quality offices pulling ahead. Occupiers are placing more weight on location, wellness, amenities and workplace experience.

Charter Hall's Fiona Denison compared office portfolio management with running a hotel, except the buildings have desks rather than beds. She said premium offices now compete through experience as much as workspace. That shift is raising costs and rents because owners are adding more amenities.

Denison said tenants are not pushing back on those costs when the workplace helps attract and retain talent. Premium buildings are adding Pilates studios, basketball and pickleball courts, stronger end-of-trip facilities and even ice baths. She does not see every amenity as essential. However, tenant expectations around wellness are higher than at any point she has seen in the portfolio.

GPT Group head of office Matthew Brown said the company follows an experience-first approach. It increasingly views office as a service rather than a commoditized product. Tenants want employees to feel connected to a building community. That puts more responsibility on landlords to curate the experience.

Wellness is another priority, with owners expected to support healthier workplace routines. Brown said innovation in London and New York has helped upgraded buildings achieve higher occupancy. He also linked those gains to better forward returns for owners. His operating message is straightforward: landlords need regular dialogue with tenants about business and workforce needs.

Dexus is approaching leasing through what executive general manager Andy Collins calls Forever Fitouts. The model aims to reduce the financial and environmental cost of traditional fitouts. Those interiors are often removed after a five- to seven-year lease. Collins said more core-market lease transactions over the past 12 to 24 months involved fitted space than clear space.