West Yorkshire

The region broadly splits into two markets. The western part of the region which suffers from low land availability due to high demand for alternative use and somewhat hampered motorway access given heavy local use. And, the eastern part of the region, which is better established for industrial use and benefits from transport upgrades and improved road connectivity. The region has continued to attract well-known occupier and developer interest, particularly in Wakefield, Leeds and Normanton.

The region had its strongest year on record in 2020, with over 5 million sq ft of space taken-up. Headline forward commitments by Amazon, with its 2 million sq ft pre-let at PLP’s Gateway 45 in Leeds and Next with its land purchase for a 777,000 sq ft facility in Elmsall drove this record year. Wakefield, Normanton and Leeds were the focus of occupier interest in 2020. In terms of development activity, speculative developments were up again, with large schemes completing at Logic Leeds, and Gateway 45 and attracting occupier interest. Developers have increasing confidence in the region and the pipeline is improving, with schemes underway in Wakefield and planning granted on large scale schemes such as Gateway 36, and the Europort site in Castleford. Availability remains very low at 3.5% and occupier interest is high, so our outlook for rental growth is for an above average 2.7% per year for the next 3 years.