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Webinar: Impacts 2026 Launch  Public Article

Global real estate and how we think about it are being reshaped by economic uncertainty and geopolitical change. These changes also mean that how we live, work and invest is evolving. At our webinar filmed at London Stock Exchange Studios, Savills World Research delivered insightful presentations and spoke to core members of our international team, unpacking the changes and pressures facing the built environment and the opportunities that exist for proactive decision makers. Read the full Impacts 2026 report with eight articles exploring the topics shaping the future of real estate.

Location strategy now leads with labour  Public Article

For decades, companies have based location decisions on access to customers, capital and cost. In 2026, the realities of structural megatrends are reshaping that model. Demographic change is redefining talent availability; housing affordability is influencing where people choose to live and work and AI is accelerating demand for specialised skills. Simultaneously, a more volatile operating environment is prompting organisations to prioritise resilience and rethink how their portfolios are structured.

Today’s talent landscape: how companies are changing their location strategies  Public Article

Businesses are rethinking where they locate amid labour scarcity, moving work where talent is available and spreading operations across multiple cities. The past decade has brought some of the most profound changes to working practices since the Industrial Revolution. Labour scarcity, slowing global migration and macroeconomic volatility have made finding and retaining talent more complex. At the same time, maturing digital technology has enabled companies to spread functions across different cities. Traditionally, businesses clustered in a select few leading global cities, drawn by deep talent pools, access to capital and proximity to clients. Today, a new corporate geography is emerging. These major global cities remain important but are now part of wider office networks that support growth, provide access to talent and improve cost efficiency. This has flipped the traditional relationship between workers and jobs: increasingly, companies are not asking talent to relocate but are moving to where they can find skills matched to their strategy. In boardrooms across the globe, corporate expansion plans are driven by the question: where can we find – and keep – the right people?

AI’s implications for real estate  Public Article

The growth of AI is poised to reshape labour markets and drive data centre investment. But how could it change property in the future? AI adoption has grown rapidly since OpenAI launched ChatGPT, the first mass-market large-language model, in late 2022. While the technology is still in its infancy, its effects on productivity and labour markets are starting to be felt. Regulators around the world are also considering how to respond. Real estate is already experiencing AI’s impact: data centres are enjoying an investment boom. This is driven in part by record hyperscaler spending, for which the US has been the major recipient. There are also knock-on effects for logistics, with Europe alone expected to see an additional 8.5 million sq ft of demand for supporting warehousing space over the next three years. Longer term, the implications for the industry are less certain. But if the current pace of uptake and technological development continues, AI could have a transformative effect.

Global Occupier Markets: Market Makers H1 2026  Public Article

Prime office leasing volumes remained stable in H1 2026 across our global dataset of the top 10 deals in 42 markets. Expansionary deals accounted for 58% of all activity. This suggests companies may be starting to move away from a “wait and see” approach to leasing. Just 5% of deals involved a reduction in space, signalling the continued value placed on office space. Meanwhile, the share of businesses relocating or renewing at a similar footprint fell to 37% in H1 2026, down from 44% in H2 2025. Of these, relocations accounted for the majority of activity (49%), while 37% of transactions were stay-in-place renewals. Over the same period, prime office occupier costs rose by 2.0%, highlighting the sustained demand for premium buildings.

The new geography of production  Public Article

Manufacturers are favouring nearshoring amid economic and geopolitical uncertainty. Industrial and logistics real estate is changing as a result. After a turbulent start to the decade, globalisation is settling into a new equilibrium. A series of major economic and geopolitical shocks have reshaped the cross-border flows of goods, capital and people that defined the previous era of ‘Great Moderation’. A key driver of change is an increase in state influence. Governments have implemented around 220 new investment policy measures annually since 2022. This represents a 75% increase on the pre-Covid-19 average, according to analysis of the UN Conference on Trade and Development’s Investment Policy Monitor. These initiatives are designed to meet a broad set of objectives, including responding to common structural pressures such as growing economic and technological competition. Many focus on supporting ‘strategic’ sectors – including semiconductors, clean energy and digital infrastructure – often with a national security dimension.

Global Occupier Markets: Prime Office Costs – Q2 2026  Public Article

Prime office markets remain characterised by a flight to quality. Organisations continue to prioritise premium offices, concentrating demand on the best buildings in the most desirable locations. This is particularly evident in markets such as Singapore, London City and Seoul, where limited availability of best-in-class space and resilient demand continue to place upward pressure on costs. Some markets, however, are witnessing a slowing pace of occupier cost growth for best-in-class offices. Markets such as Madrid are seeing improved availability as new developments and refurbishments complete, creating opportunities for businesses to access high-quality space amid more moderating cost rises. This reinforces the importance of understanding local supply dynamics alongside headline rental trends when making real estate decisions. Another key theme is the growing influence of AI and technology occupiers. In cities such as San Francisco, London and Shenzhen, demand from AI firms is rapidly absorbing high-quality space and intensifying competition for the most desirable offices.

The Real Estate Signals Reshaping Global Business  Public Article

The global map is being redrawn. Supply chains are rerouting, talent is concentrating in new cities, and AI is changing what operational infrastructure needs to look like. For GBS and outsourcing leaders, the decisions you make about where to operate, where to source, and where to grow have never been more consequential -- or more complex.  And few industries have a better read on where the world is heading than global real estate.

Global Occupier Strategy – measuring the value of the workplace  Public Article

Businesses increasingly expect the workplace to support wider organisational goals, but measuring its contribution remains challenging. New approaches to workplace measurement can help connect investment with outcomes. The office is typically one of the largest investments businesses make, after their people. Costs associated with the workplace account for 8.4% of revenue and 12.5% of operating costs on average, according to our analysis of 50 publicly listed multinational companies. These figures highlight the importance of accurately evaluating – as well as enhancing - the value of workplace strategies. This challenge is more relevant than ever as expectations of the office evolve, influenced by both hybrid working and the growing impact of AI. Today, organisations are placing greater emphasis on bringing people together to build human relationships, share knowledge, learn from one another and generate new ideas.

AI in Corporate Real Estate Portfolio Management  Public Article

AI is moving beyond pilots to support corporate real estate strategy development, portfolio management, and data-driven decision-making across global occupier organizations.

Making Offices Fit for the Future  Public Article

Faced with tightening climate regulations and rising tenant expectations, should the owners of offices refurbish their properties – or rebuild them?

Why building resilience is key when it comes to warehouse refurbishment  Public Article

With the commercial real estate market now refocusing on the refurbishment and reuse of existing assets, many landlords and investors are taking stock of their warehouse portfolios to identify essential yet cost-effective improvements.

The demand for talent and how to attract the best employees through personalisation  Public Article

The ever-growing expectations of the workplace. The competition for talent has intensified in recent years, but the reasons why have shifted.

Exploring Tomorrow’s Growth Hubs  Public Article

Demographic momentum, skills and evolving supply chains are positioning Asia’s cities as compelling growth hubs.

European Logistics Market  Public Article

Economic outlook: After a year of turbulence, economic conditions point to growth in the industrial and logistics sector in 2026.

Adapting supply chains in era of global disruption  Public Article

From shifting tariff regimes to natural disasters, cyber-attacks and regional conflict, global disruption has become the new normal. How have supply chains – and industrial and logistics occupiers – had to adapt?

Matcha Index – Café Culture as a key success factor for Tech Cities  Public Article

The Savills Matcha Index, which explores the relationship between café culture, wellness and innovation in the world’s most dynamic technology hubs, reveals clear correlations.

Adaptation or obsolescence: real estate on the front line of climate change  Public Article

As global temperatures exceed the critical threshold of 1.5°C over pre-industrial levels, strategies to adapt to climate change are crucial to protecting property and prosperity.

Tech Cities: Talent is the Key  Public Article

As AI reshapes the tech landscape, Savills Tech Cities Index reveals the global hubs driving innovation, attracting talent and shaping real estate.

Savills Resilient Cities Index  Public Article

Explore global cities creating the best opportunities for investors and occupiers

AI and European Offices: Separating Hype from Reality  Public Article

To what extent is artificial intelligence actually having an impact on office-based hiring across Europe?

Spotlight on the life sciences sector  Public Article

In a fast-changing world, life sciences occupiers reassess how real estate strategies can help them to stay ahead of the competition by accessing the right talent, delivering product to market, supporting cost optimisation, and driving environmental sustainability.

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