Concern with earthquake-prone buildings continues to dominate many aspects of commercial property in Hawke's Bay, leading to a 175 per cent increase in advertised office space since May.
The Hawke's Bay Commercial and Industrial Property Market Report, for the first and second quarter of 2012, indicates a "supply bubble" as developers and landlords respond to the seismic status of buildings.
The report, from property analysts and valuers Turley and Co, labelled the speculative response as "overstated" and "ridiculous" with 21,500 sq m of office space being offered in the past three months. The figure equates to 3.1 rugby fields, or enough office space for 1100 people at a ratio of 20 sq m per person.
The total amount of office space to lease being redeveloped, as well as proposed new buildings, brings the amount of office space advertised in Hawke's Bay to 33,800 sq m for the 15-months to July, the equivalent of a 24-storey building at 1400 sq m per floor.
Of the additional space offered since May, 63 per cent is advertised as at least 80 per cent of the New Building Standard in terms of seismic performance. "Seismic performance status (NBS rating) is in 2012 a top-of-list item causing pain, uncertainty, opportunity and mostly tenant-led activity," the report said.