Even with a strong foothold, the global pandemic had a parallel effect on the Bangalore’s real estate like it did across all industries worldwide. Known for its thriving economy and vibrant IT sector, the Silicon Valley of India has experienced a significant impact on its real estate sector. Till the first quarter of the calendar year 2020, the real estate sector in Bangalore was as vibrant as ever, with rapid movement in rent, demand and supply. The consequential damage caused due to the pandemic, led to a significant decline in the net commercial space leasing. According to JLL India, the net commercial space leasing came down by 37%. From the halt in construction to companies being forced to reevaluate their real estate requirements, the impact of the pandemic in Bangalore was transformational. Explore how the Pandemic affected Bangalore’s commercial real estate market, the redefined work environments it has shaped, and the resilient foundations it has laid for the future.
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Remote work adoption – During the start of the pandemic, employees were concerned about their work-life balance by working from home. Realizing the flexibility work from home provides, individuals have slowly changed their perception. Today, if you ask employees whether they would work from the office or home, 80% of them would prefer work from home and 30-40% of them may even quit. The future of white-collar jobs is where employees work from the office a few days a week and the rest from home, agrees HR executives. With fully functioning companies even in the pandemic, the overall concept of workplace, work, and workforce changed tremendously. This not only lets the employees and employers experience the best of both worlds by ensuring flexibility and saving time on long commutes to work, but it also makes room for collaborative work and social interactions. This remote working trend was embraced by companies in Bangalore through telecommuting and made them rethink the need for large commercial offices, directly impacting the demand for office spaces. Developers in Bangalore started adapting to this trend by redesigning large commercial office spaces to accommodate hybrid work structures. This allowed companies to reduce costs by downsizing their traditional office spaces in addition to providing employees with a collaborative environment.
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Flexible workspaces – Due to the shifting priorities of today’s workforce and the swift evolution of technology we have already entered the modern office era, it took the pandemic crisis to adapt to the dynamic workforce strategies. Ensuring many companies shift to more flexible workspaces. With flexible workspaces entering the country’s office market, there has been wide acceptance of flexible workspaces. Fortunately for the Indian market, which consists largely of managed/co-working office space operators, this fragment has been growing by a significant amount in the Indian office market. Especially during the pandemic, organizations that were looking to cut down on costs used the flexible work structure where a part of the employees would work from the central office and some would work remotely from home. Flexible working arrangements were considered to be a viable option, when organizations were struggling to continue their business operations and stay afloat. By adapting to a flexible working structure, flexibility becomes one major advantage to the companies in terms of leasing/renting large office spaces, which ensures preparedness for the future economic events. Where in turn this ensures greater elasticity in the number of employees in office as the market conditions shift. Today, businesses would likely prefer to pay for current space requirements on a monthly basis rather than committing to future requirements. Developers are utilizing this opportunity to convert and build new spaces that cater to flexible working arrangements. The spaces include shared workspaces, co-working spaces, flexible workstations and mixed use projects.
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Technology enhanced workspaces – The adoption of technology in new-age workspaces after the pandemic in India, particularly in co-working spaces, has revolutionized the way people work and collaborate. Smart office infrastructures with IoT devices optimize energy usage and enhance comfort. Touchless access systems, air quality monitoring, and smart building management have become essential features in office spaces. These innovations not only made offices safer but also more efficient and sustainable. Video conferencing, virtual meeting rooms, and collaborative platforms facilitate seamless communication and project management. With employees and companies turning to flexible working arrangements, real estate in Bangalore is adapting to this trend through smart buildings with high speed internet connectivity, loT integration and cutting edge collaboration and conferencing tools. All these features are being incorporated in the buildings to accommodate the needs of the tech savvy professionals and startups.
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Evolving tenant expectations – The expectations of Bangalore tenants heightened as an aftereffect of the pandemic. With companies now prioritizing safety and health measures, environmental sustainability and flexibility in lease terms. Investing in sustainable building technologies, state-of-the-art HVAC systems and touchless technologies have helped commercial landlords to adapt to these demands. In addition properties in areas with easy access to amenities such as local markets, healthcare facilities and recreational spaces. This demand has given rise to ‘work-live-play’ communities altering the traditional office space concept.
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Focus on health and safety – Employees and companies started prioritizing health and safety as an aftereffect of the pandemic, and started shifting towards the suburban areas. Reducing the exposure to crowded public spaces and allowing for better social distancing, suburban areas with lower populations are seen as desirable. With access to outdoor spaces, spacious housing options and greenery in the suburban areas is attracting the commercial and residential tenants alike. Expanding towards the unexplored areas from the city, has set to be beneficial for the developers. Landlords have also been incorporating health based amenities into their projects, like green spaces, prioritizing ventilation and air quality, touchless access systems and smart building management.
The pandemic has had a transformative impact on Bangalore’s commercial real estate sector. The adoption of remote work has led to a redefinition of work environments, with companies adapting to hybrid work structures and downsizing their traditional office spaces. The rise of flexible workspaces has provided organizations with cost-saving options and greater elasticity in the number of employees in the office. Technology-enhanced workspaces have become essential, with smart building features and collaboration tools facilitating seamless communication. Tenant expectations have evolved, with a focus on safety, sustainability, and access to amenities. Finally, there has been a shift towards suburban areas that offer lower population density and more outdoor space. Overall, the pandemic has reshaped Bangalore’s commercial real estate market and laid the foundation for a more flexible and resilient future. For more information regarding the real estate sector, contact the best property management company in Bangalore, Jones Asset Management to enjoy reliable data.
