How Much is the Average Office Rental Rate in Ortigas?

by Lina Martinez

The average monthly rate of an office space for lease in Ortigas cost around P735 per square meter between January and March of this year.

Cushman & Wakefield Philippines listed the figure as the median price for a rental office in Pasig. In fact, the city’s rental rates are the cheapest in Metro Manila. By contrast, renting an office in Taguig for the first quarter likely required a company to pay P1,200 per square meter each month. Growing demand seems to be the major cause of increasing prices, as well as the lack of new office space to keep up with demand.

Expensive Office Rents

If you set up an office in Makati in the coming months, you should expect to spend P1,195 per square meter every month. The price will become more expensive when you decide to lease a unit along Ayala Avenue. It’s the same scenario for prime office buildings in Taguig, particularly in the Bonifacio Global City area.

Monthly median rental prices for Grade A office space in the National Capital Region (NCR) rose by an annual rate of almost 9% to P946 per square meter in the first quarter. Cushman & Wakefield’s report showed that the overall office stock in the region reached more than seven million square meters during the same period. Taguig accounted for nearly 2.1 million square feet of the total supply, followed by Makati and Pasig with a combined area of around 2.5 million square feet.

While a shortage of supply often explains the higher rates, there has to be a consistent need for commercial space among tenants. This became evident in Taguig during the first quarter. Despite having the most supply, more companies, particularly from the outsourcing sector, continue to look for good spots in the city.

Cheaper Alternatives

Pasig had over 1.1 million square feet of space and it still offered the lower price more than any other city in the NCR. Quezon City also had more than one million square feet of leasable space, but its vacancy rate reached 9.9%. This may have indicated a weaker demand among commercial tenants compared to other cities.

It may change when the new subway system becomes operational in the metro. At least seven of the terminals from the transportation project will be located in Quezon City. On the other hand, offices rents in the Ortigas district will likely increase by around 5% per year between 2019 and 2021. Offshore gaming operators have been fueling the growth of commercial rents within Metro Manila, aside from the usual players in the business process outsourcing sector.

If you’re still looking for other options, you should check for other offices in Mandaluyong where rates cost P786 per square meter every month. In Quezon City, monthly average prices a bit higher at P854 per square meter.

Whether or not you end up setting an office in Ortigas, don’t just look for cheap buildings. Location is important for any business especially for start-up companies. How much are you willing to spend on your monthly office lease?