The future of the office?
The office is dying. Or, maybe its already dead?
Seth Godin has said “Goodbye to the office.”
Jeff Rubin says the pump prices will end (at least shorten) your commute.
One of my clients (a retired, savvy investor), has recently decided they would no longer be looking at adding office buildings to their portfolio – for similar reasons cited by Seth Godin & Jeff Rubin above.
Questions for you:
- In Edmonton & Calgary office vacancy is growing. Yes, there will be upswings/fluctuations but the long-term demand will likely diminish. How long do you have to safely reduce your exposure? Do you really need to?
- New home builders: are you building cutting-edge home office spaces into your new projects? If not, home buyer’s will be buying from your competitor who does. Simply closing the door doesn’t keep out the ruckus my kids can strum up.
- What does the new office solution look like? Can you picture a pay-per-hour meetup space next to every Starbucks? Planners featured in the Canadian movie “Radiant City” suggest that home-owners may build attached office spaces in their front yards; a traditionally unused space. Is this plausible?
- Are you investing in video conferencing tools/technologies?
- What other sectors are losing relevance? How big of a threat is online shopping to Retail?
- What sectors are becoming more relevant? It seems to me demand will continue to increase for medium-high density multi-family & condo’s, as well as industrial warehouse & manufacturing spaces.
If we were starting this whole office thing today, it’s inconceivable we’d pay the rent/time/commuting cost to get what we get. I think in ten years the TV show ‘the Office’ will be seen as a quaint antique.
- Seth Godin
To watch the trend grow, follow Work Shifting.com
Your thoughts?
Photo Credit: Fabio Bruna
