Almost 40 percent of current industrial enquiries in South Yorkshire & North East Derbyshire with commercial property agent Knight Frank are for small units up to 5,000 sq ft.
Small multi-let units can provide opportunity for satellite depots and for SMEs and new start companies to locate to and, in many cases offer a foundation for growth.
Harry Orwin–Allen, Senior Surveyor and Kitty Hendrick, Surveyor in the Knight Frank Sheffield office look at the trend for these smaller industrial units.
Harry said: “We are seeing continued demand for small industrial units across the region with the continued supply / demand imbalance resulting in strong rental growth.
“There has been very little new development of small multi-let units over recent years due to continued viability challenges for such sized developments.
“Where we have seen units become available we have seen good levels of interest with a large proportion of the demand being from SMEs for industrial, warehouse and manufacturing uses.”
Examples in South Yorkshire & North East Derbyshire include:
Hartington Business Park – A newly developed scheme offering six units of 2,500 – 4,500 sq ft. Lettings agreed on 5 units with headline rents of £7.75 per sq ft being achieved.
Newhall Industrial Estate – Well-located off Brightside Lane in Sheffield with excellent access to Junction 34 of the M1, this multi-let scheme provides 22 units ranging from 800–4,000 sq ft in size. New headline rents of £11 per sq ft have been achieved in 2023 for 900 sq ft units.
Hillfoot Industrial Estate – Located off Penistone Road, this multi-let scheme provides units ranging from 900-1,900 sq ft. New headline rents of £11.50 per sq ft achieved recently on 1,000 sq ft units.
West Moor Park Network Centre – Multi-let estate providing 22 high quality business units ranging from 803 to 3,498 sq ft. Headline rents have been achieved at £10.50 per sq ft. Benefits from direct access to Junction 4 of the M18.
Magna 34 – New build modern units located close to Junction 34 of the M1 where 100% of the units are now let with headline rents of £10.30 per sq ft being achieved. Units range from 2,500-4,768 sq ft.
Colleague Kitty Hendrick, surveyor at the Knight Frank Sheffield office, added: “Usually units of this size are let on standard lease terms of 3-5 years. Occupiers of this unit size typically look for flexibility and immediately available space and look to secure occupation swiftly.
“Enquiry levels for accommodation in the sub 5,000 sq ft size bracket have hit 40%, however there is a shortage of stock for this type of unit which has been exacerbated by a lack of development within this size bracket due to increasing build costs, and as a result we continue to see a strong amount of lettings transact for units of this size each year.”
