Why is total new-build office space completing outside London in 2025 so low?

According to analysis from Knight Frank there is circa 613,000 sq ft new-build office accommodation completing outside of London this year, of which around 370,000 sq ft remains available.  Furthermore, almost half of the available space is in Sunderland.

Sunderland has 156,938 square feet of acquirable workspace across two properties, the Maker & Faber buildings which were funded by Legal & General and sit in the wider Riverside Sunderland scheme.

James Silver, managing director at Landid, the company managing the development of Maker & Faber, said: “Sunderland is undergoing transformation at a rate not seen in decades, and these new offices are playing a part in that, with plans to create 1m square foot of commercial property across the Riverside Sunderland site.

“This is one of the most exciting cities in the UK right now, with a clear vision that is delivering high quality places to work, but also to live and play too.”

The other schemes completing this year include Bruntwood SciTech’s No.3 Circle Square feet, a circa 267,000-square-foot scheme in Manchester, that has already secured prelets with Puma, Autotrader and the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Birmingham’s 3 Chamberlain Square, part of Federated Hermes’ £1.2 billion wider Paradise scheme in the city centre, is the fourth regional new-build office completing and available to let this year.

Leaving aside the question as to whether Sunderland is undergoing a transformation or not the total new build figure seems astonishly low. Is this down to construction costs, lack of demand, high proportion of refurbs…?