October 14, 2020 | Danny J. McMullen

I recently read a great article from the Globe and Mail – please follow this link to the original article. This article highlights a few current trends that are worth highlighting:

– Big organizations are looking to expand their office footprint into smaller markets that are outside of the Toronto core through short term subletting agreements. This is likely due to the fact that many office buildings are still not fully accessible by companies and they are looking to secure space closer to where their employees live that are immediately accessible.

– Companies are still actively investing in high quality new build office space as it comes online – as per this article, Google, the tech giant and Gowlings WLG the international law firm have both signed onto long term leases in new builds located in the Kitchener Waterloo area. I think this highlights the fact that having a welcoming professional office environment will continue to be a key driver of growth, company culture and important to long term employee satisfaction. I believe that those early reports trumpeting death of the office are likely overblown and companies will continue to invest heavily in office spaces to promote collaboration and engagement despite the effects of COVID-19.

– Subleasing opportunities for office space in major markets has increased and the amount of available space for subleasing in the Canadian office market in the third quarter has increased from the previous quarter to 1.6 million square feet.

For any companies considering subleasing, Northview is happy to offer a complimentary consultation to discuss the important legal aspects of subleasing opportunities in the short or long term, this link will take you to a page where you can book a thirty minute complimentary consultation to discuss further.