Square footage: mini-offices are being bought up en masse in Russia

The office real estate market is experiencing a rapid increase in the share of transactions for the purchase of premises from 50 to 300 square meters. analysts told Izvestia. The number of such purchases has doubled in a year. Most often, mini-offices are purchased for the sake of renting, experts said. In addition, due to restrictions on the construction of apartments in Moscow, developers have changed their projects, deciding to open offices where it is impossible to implement residential complexes. About why interest in micro-format commercial real estate has grown, see the Izvestia article.

What kind of commercial real estate is being bought up

The demand for small office space in Russia has more than doubled compared to the same period last year, market participants told Izvestia. In Moscow alone, the number of commercial real estate purchases increased 1.7 times, according to the consulting company Core.XP. We are talking about rooms with an area of 50 to 300 square meters. m.

At the same time, the absolute number of transactions with small offices has soared 14 times in five years. The average budget for buying such a space (up to 300 square meters) varies from 20 million to 150 million rubles, which is comparable to the price of a business and premium class apartment in Moscow.

— Now, in the office real estate market, customers have a wider choice in terms of product cutting: from large blocks to small premises, — said Vasily Grigoriev, director of the company's market research department. — Such a diversified product allows investors to choose facilities that meet their individual needs and different investment strategies.

As of March 2025, the average cost of Class A office space (equipped with high-tech automated life support systems, climate control and ventilation, as well as fiber-optic telecommunications) in buildings under construction has reached 390 thousand rubles per square meter. m excluding VAT. The price per square meter of offices offered in small cuts is growing by at least 10% annually.

The share of sales of such premises in the demand structure in 2024, according to Natalia Nikitina, head of the CMWP Office Real Estate department, was 30%.

— At the same time, 75% of sales transactions last year accounted for premises with an area of less than 300 square meters, — she said. — In the volume of transactions, 50% are offices ranging from 45 to 200 square meters. m.

Usually, the minimum square footage is 30 square meters, but in one of the projects there was a room with an area of 13.5 square meters, said Ivan Tatarinov, executive director of the Glincom development company.

"Unlike residential complexes, there are no restrictions here, and such compact spaces are quite enough for very small companies and startups," he added.

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It is unprofitable for developers to build such facilities due to expensive sites and the cost of projects.

Mini-offices ranging from 15-20 square meters can also be found on the market. m — they are offered in the format of coworking spaces or as separate offices in business centers.

In class B offices (with a cabinet-corridor and combined type layout, high-quality finishes, a proven telecommunications provider and a 24-hour security system) and below, there are lots of 5 square meters and even 3 square meters, added Elizaveta Ilyukhina, head of the commercial department of West Wind Group.

"Although such premises are marketed as offices, they are more suitable for takeaway coffee if they are located on the ground floor, as well as for a mini-warehouse or simply for registering a legal address," she noted.

As Alexandra Zakharova, director of commercial real estate at Level Group, noted, approximately 67% of buyers are private investors.

"We are seeing steady interest from companies from various sectors of the economy," she said. — There are already large trading firms, logistics operators, and construction companies among our residents. The average area of the purchased lot is 92 sq. m.

Why are they buying up mini-offices

For a long time, people in Russia preferred to build, sell and rent large office spaces, but over the past couple of years the market situation has changed dramatically and the number of transactions for the purchase of mini-format offices has multiplied, Anton Leskin, head of the department for the sale and lease of commercial real estate at the federal company Floors, told Izvestia.

— Firstly, developers began to incorporate them into their projects, and secondly, investors began to buy out large office premises that appeared as a result of the withdrawal from the market or bankruptcy of large companies, and split them into smaller ones, - the expert explained. — Therefore, the demand is growing both for mini-offices from the business side and for large office premises from 700 sq.m. m or more, in which investors are interested. This splitting allows you to get a yield per square meter in the range of 20-40%.

In addition, there has been an unsatisfied demand for office real estate on the market for about ten years, Ivan Tatarinov added.

— All these years, the volume of absorption of such areas has been high, while the commissioning of new facilities, on the contrary, has been low, — said the expert. — There has been a certain shortage of high-quality office real estate. Plus, developers respond to investors' requests by creating small lots for them — thanks to a relatively small transaction receipt, more buyers can be attracted, and the cost per square meter of such offices is higher.

One of the reasons for the increase in supply and demand is the ban on the construction of apartments. It has been operating in Moscow since the summer of 2024. Because of this, many developers have changed their projects, deciding to build offices where it is impossible to implement residential complexes.

Grigory Nachkin, Deputy General Director of the Russian Auction House, added that it used to be difficult to buy a small block in an office because such offers were practically absent from the market.

"It was difficult to ensure its autonomous operation," he noted.

The number of transactions with small offices has increased significantly in recent years due to the implementation of the Integrated Territorial Development program in Moscow, said Ksenia Kharkevich, head of the office department at Invest7 commercial real estate agency.

"Developers are required to build new office buildings together with residential buildings," she explained.

Half of these offices are bought by investors, and the other half by companies that are looking for premises for their employees, Natalia Nikitina noted.

"Most often, clients who purchase offices for themselves review projects or buildings at the final stage of construction, for example, a year before commissioning, in order to assess the location and appearance," she added. — Investors, in turn, buy offices at the initial stages of construction, for example, at the excavation stage, for the purpose of resale or rental.

The main buyers of such premises are small and medium-sized businesses that use them to house their divisions, individual entrepreneurs working outside the home, as well as investors who purchase workspaces for rent and stable income, confirmed Anna Trushkina, head of the Whitewill office department.

However, according to Elizaveta Ilyukhina, the number of investors in this segment has decreased over the past year. But in some sectors, the number of players with funds to buy has increased. For example, in industries related to government orders and import substitution.

"A small cut allows companies to attract relatively small budgets for purchases," she explained. — The situation on the rental market plays a role: there are almost no high-quality offers, and the growth of rental rates in 2025 may exceed the rate of inflation. A business needs to be sure that it will not have to experience difficulties with the selection of premises, and having its own office provides this guarantee.

The average area of the offices sold was 1.5 thousand square meters, added Pavel Barbashev, Commercial Director of O1 Properties. And the lease term is from three to five years. Rates have increased by 20-40% over the year, with most of the facilities showing zero vacancy.

According to him, the trend in 2024 was the sale of premises that require additional investments in redevelopment or are offered in shell&core format (without finishing). The main tenants of the offices were IT companies, manufacturing enterprises and organizations with state participation.