BPOs to fuel office demand in 2022

Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firms, e-commerce companies, and data centers are expected to drive the demand for office spaces in the Philippines this year, a top executives from Philippine real estate firms project.
According to a report from BusinessWorld, JLL Philippines Vice-Chairman Joey M. Radovan said that the office market will be in “full recovery mode by the second half of 2022.”
He added that the IT-BPO (information technology-business process outsourcing) industry “will remain resilient and will continue to pave the way for long-term office space demand” due to its “attractive labor demographics.”
Meanwhile, Santos Knight Frank Occupier Services Senior Director Morgan McGilvray said BPOs could post a “reliable demand” that is projected to surpass 2020 and 2021 figures.
As for vacancy rates, KMC Savills Co-Founder and Managing Partner Michael McCullough said that it could rise from last year’s 19% to this year’s 21% as more organizations are expected to continue implementing a hybrid work model.
Property consultants added that companies are expected to explore places outside Metro Manila, such as in the cities of Cebu and Iloilo.
Radovan noted that investors are interested in the new developments that are being built in the Northern Luzon area.