Logistics rental growth continues in the Netherlands, despite drop in take-up

The logistics sector is not immune to macro-economic headwinds, according to Savills Netherands’ latest Logistics & Industrial Market Update. Take-up numbers dropped by 58% y-o-y in the Netherlands in Q1 2023 as the economy slowed, and total logistics space take-up  of 455,000 sq m, which was well below the average of the last 8 years.

The decline is not only due to less favourable economic circumstances. The drop in take-up can also be viewed as the result of a lack of available space, and not simply as the effect of decreasing demand. At the start of the second quarter of 2023, the vacancy rate of logistics space in the Netherlands is just 3%, which is only 40 bps above the record low of the summer of 2022. In some logistics hotpots in the province of Noord-Brabant like Roosendaal and Eindhoven, the vacancy rate has fallen below 1%. This situation will not change in the short-term, as the availability of land for logistics developments in the Netherlands is limited, and the competition for available land from other sectors is fierce.

The scarcity of logistics space has contributed to rental growth in recent years which continued in the first quarter of 2023. Prime rents rose in logistics hotspots like Rotterdam (+15.2%) and Eindhoven (+10.7%)

Niek Poppelaars, Co-Head Logistics & Industrial at Savills in the Netherlands, says: “An important additional driver of prime rents, however, is rising construction costs for new developments. Prime rents usually refer to new high quality developments which typically demand a rental premium. An increasing number of occupiers will drift towards other locations as a consequence of rising rents, accelerating the trend towards a progressively scattered logistics landscape and raising the visibility of new logistics developments with the general public.”

Douglas van Oers, Co-Head Logistics & Industrial at Savills in the Netherlands, says: “Logistics is repricing faster than other sectors which is reflected in tumbling investment volumes. Logistics sales were 550m in the first quarter, and in fairness have been relatively stable since the middle of 2022. But volumes are down by two thirds since the start of last year. However the strong occupier fundamentals are keeping investors drawn to the logistics sector and we expect a rise in investment volume for the second half of the year.”

Read the full report here.