According to analysis by Cushman & Wakefield, take-up generated through new lettings and owner-occupier transactions in the Hamburg office market totalled 280,400 sq m during the first three quarters of 2026. This represents a decline of around 9% compared with the previous year (Q1-Q3 2025: 308,900 sq m), and was 21% below the five-year average and 25% below the ten-year average.
Momentum in the large-scale segment remains limited
In the third quarter of 2026, office take-up amounted to 90,700 sq m, broadly in line with the previous quarter (Q2 2026: 89,300 sq m). Compared with the corresponding period of the previous year (Q3 2025: 95,800 sq m), however, this reflects a decline of just over 5%.
The distribution of take-up highlights the current structure of the Hamburg office market. Letting activity continues to be driven primarily by small and medium-sized requirements, with approximately 71% of all space transacted during the third quarter accounted for by deals of up to 3,000 sq m. Large-scale lettings remained scarce. No transactions above the 10,000 sq m threshold were recorded in the third quarter, limiting overall take-up despite generally stable leasing activity.
A key contributor to third-quarter take-up was the owner-occupier development start by the Northern German Academy of Finance and Tax Law in the Hamburg South-East submarket. The project will comprise approximately 6,400 sq m of space.
“The underlying demand for office space remains in place but is currently being constrained by ongoing economic uncertainty. Many companies are carefully reviewing their workplace strategies and are often opting to extend existing leases before committing to new premises. At the same time, decision-making processes, particularly for larger occupier requirements, are taking considerably longer than they did a few years ago,” said Bastian Poppe, Associate, Leasing Agency - Office Hamburg at Cushman & Wakefield.
The highest number of leasing transactions in the third quarter was recorded in the City Centre submarket. With 30 transactions, representing nearly 20% of all market deals, the area once again emerged as a focal point of leasing activity. This was followed by the City Süd submarket, accounting for approximately 14% of market activity, and Barmbek, which represented more than 11% of total take-up. Together, these three submarkets accounted for approximately 44% of all recorded transactions.
The largest transaction of the year remains the owner-occupier development commenced by MSC, which is currently developing its German headquarters on Stockmeyerstraße in the HafenCity submarket. The scheme will provide approximately 12,800 sq m of office space.
Prime rent stable while average rent eases slightly
The prime rent remained unchanged at €37.50 per sq m/month at the end of the third quarter of 2026, maintaining the level recorded in the previous quarter. Compared with the same period last year, this represents an increase of 4.2%. Despite this growth, Hamburg continued to record the lowest prime office rent among Germany’s five largest office markets.
The weighted average rent stood at €21.65 per sq m/month at the end of the third quarter. Compared with the previous quarter (€22.10 per sq m/month), this represents a slight correction.
“Although the average rent softened marginally during the third quarter, rental levels across the Hamburg office market remain broadly stable overall. Demand for modern office accommodation in centrally located areas remains particularly strong. The unchanged prime rent underlines that occupiers continue to be willing to pay premium rents for high-quality office space,” said Bastian Poppe.
Continued increase in vacancy across the Hamburg office market
The Hamburg office market recorded a further increase in the volume of readily available office space during the third quarter. The vacancy rate rose to 7.4%, up from 7.0% in the previous quarter. By the end of September, approximately 1.06 million sq m of office space was available for immediate occupation.
Sublease space continued to account for a significant share of the available stock. At the end of the third quarter of 2026, around 7% of total vacant space was being marketed as sublease accommodation.
Development pipeline remains substantial
The development pipeline remains well supplied. During the first nine months of 2026, approximately 444,300 sq m of office space was under construction. Of this total, around 232,200 sq m remained available, equating to a pre-letting rate of just over 50%.
By the end of the third quarter of 2026, total office completions had reached approximately 108,500 sq m. Following a comparatively quiet third quarter, during which only around 20,300 sq m of office space was completed, construction activity remained below the levels recorded in earlier quarters.
Of the space completed since the beginning of the year, approximately 36,600 sq m remained available at the end of September, corresponding to an availability rate of 34%.
Completion activity in the third quarter was driven in particular by the “Neues Amt Altona” project in the Altona/Ottensen submarket, which comprises approximately 4,400 sq m of office space across both new-build and refurbished accommodation.
Outlook for year-end
“Looking ahead to the final quarter of 2026, the market has a number of active occupier requirements that could provide additional momentum. At the same time, tenants remain cautious and highly focused on quality when making leasing decisions. Premium office space in central locations therefore continues to attract the greatest attention. Based on market performance to date, however, a full-year take-up result of 400,000 sq m is becoming increasingly unlikely,” concluded Bastian Poppe.
