--- title: "Real estate and infrastructure office space in London" description: "Where real estate and infrastructure occupiers cluster in London, what they pay, and what the typical fit-out looks like." canonical: https://classa.info/cities/london/industries/real-estate pageType: city-industry lastUpdated: 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z license: "CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Class A Atlas (https://classa.info)." --- > Real estate and infrastructure occupiers in London typically cluster in City of London, plan ~215 sqft per seat at high-end fit-out ($220–320/sqft), and pay around 95 GBP/sqft ($121 USD) on Class A. ## TL;DR - Preferred submarket: City of London. - Typical fit-out spec: High-end ($220–320/sqft). - Plan ~215 sqft per seat for headcount sizing. - Class A rent context: 95 GBP/sqft ($121 USD). - Typical lease: 10 years with 24 months rent-free. - Talent depth in London: 96/100. # Real estate and infrastructure office space in London **Real estate and infrastructure occupiers in London typically cluster in City of London, plan ~215 sqft per seat at high-end [fit-out](/topics/fit-out-capex)">fit-out ($220–320/sqft), and pay around 95 GBP/sqft ($121 USD) on [Class A](/glossary/class-a).** ## TL;DR - Preferred submarket: City of London. - Typical fit-out spec: High-end ($220–320/sqft). - Plan ~215 sqft per seat for headcount sizing. - Class A rent context: 95 GBP/sqft ($121 USD). - Typical lease: 10 years with 24 months rent-free. - Talent depth in London: 96/100. ## Where they cluster Real estate and infrastructure occupiers in London typically anchor in City of London. Investment banks, insurance, asset managers, law firms, professional services. ## What they pay Class A rent in London runs 95 GBP/sqft ($121 USD) on a 10-year lease with 24 months free. Trophy submarkets command a 20–40% premium above the city index. ## Spec and fit-out Typical real estate and infrastructure fit-out targets high-end specification at $220–320/sqft. Branded reception, full client-facing programming, premium furniture, and specialist AV are standard. ## Headcount sizing Plan around 215 sqft per seat blended (workstation + circulation + amenity). A 100-headcount real estate office in London typically targets 21,500 sqft of leasable area. ## Talent angle Sponsor and asset-management teams favor trophy CBD addresses with proximity to investment-banking and law-firm tenancy. Largest financial-services and technology talent pool in EMEA. Average all-in compensation indexes 96 vs. New York's 100. ## Tax and lease context Headline corporate tax: 25%. London leases are predominantly Full Repairing and Insuring (FRI). Tenant pays [service charge](/glossary/service-charge) and is responsible for [dilapidations](/glossary/dilapidations) on lease end. Rent reviews to open-market rent every 5 years are standard. Rent-free periods of 18-30 months on a 10-year term are typical, with 'capped' rent-free for break-clause certainty. Personal guarantees are uncommon for institutional tenants; rent deposits are common for younger covenants. ## Key facts | city | London| | industry | Real estate and infrastructure| | naics | 531, 237| | preferredSubmarket | City of London| | preferredFitoutSpec | High-end| | fitoutBand | $220–320/sqft| | sqftPerSeat | 215| | classARentLocal | 95 GBP/sqft/yr| | classARentUsd | $121/sqft/yr| | vacancyPct | 8.6%| | typicalLeaseYears | 10| | typicalRentFreeMonths | 24| | talentIndex | 96| | corporateTaxPct | 25%| ## Frequently asked questions ****Where do real estate and infrastructure occupiers lease office space in London?**** : Most cluster in City of London. Rent runs ~95 GBP/sqft ($121 USD) for trophy and prime stock. ****What fit-out spec do real estate and infrastructure occupiers run in London?**** : Typically high-end at $220–320/sqft. ****How much office space per seat should a real estate and infrastructure occupier plan in London?**** : Plan ~215 sqft per seat blended. A 100-person team typically takes 21,500 sqft. ****What NAICS codes describe the real estate and infrastructure vertical?**** : Representative NAICS 2022 codes: 531, 237. ****What is the talent index in London?**** : 96/100. Use the city profile for full detail. ## Related - [**Real estate and infrastructure — global overview**](/industries/real-estate) - [**London — full city profile**](/cities/london) - [**Financial services in London**](/cities/london/industries/financial-services) - [**Asset management in London**](/cities/london/industries/asset-management) - [**Investment banking in London**](/cities/london/industries/investment-banking) - [**Legal services in London**](/cities/london/industries/legal-services) ## Editorial provenance Reviewed by [**Samuel Okafor**](/about/authors/samuel-okafor) — EMEA contributing editor. Last updated 2026-04-15. See our [methodology](/about/methodology) and [editorial standards](/about/editorial-standards). ### Primary sources for this page - [CBRE Marketview reports](https://www.cbre.com/insights) — CBRE - [JLL Office Insight](https://www.jll.com/en/trends-and-insights) — JLL - [Cushman & Wakefield Marketbeat](https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights) — Cushman & Wakefield - [Savills World Research](https://www.savills.com/research_articles/) — Savills - [Colliers Global Office Outlook](https://www.colliers.com/en/research) — Colliers [Full sources index](/about/sources) · [Submit a correction](/about/corrections) ## Related topics - [**Class A Lease Negotiation**](/topics/class-a-lease-negotiation) — How to negotiate a Class A office lease — the playbook from LOI to signed deal. - [**Hybrid Workplace Strategy**](/topics/hybrid-workplace-strategy) — How to size, structure, and lease a Class A office for a hybrid workforce. - [**ESG / LEED for Tenants**](/topics/esg-leed-tenants) — How tenants evaluate, negotiate, and report on ESG performance in a Class A office lease. - [**Cross-border Expansion**](/topics/cross-border-expansion) — How to run a coordinated Class A office search across multiple geographies. - [**Fit-out Capex**](/topics/fit-out-capex) — How to budget, sequence, and govern Class A office fit-out capex. - [**Lease vs Flex**](/topics/lease-vs-flex) — When premium flex (coworking, [managed office](/glossary/managed-office)) beats a conventional Class A lease — and vice versa. --- Citation: Source: Class A Atlas (https://classa.info/cities/london/industries/real-estate), updated 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z.