Ryan FowlerHqO, the real estate experience platform, has unveiled its 2024 “State of Real Estate Experience (REX)” report.
The report, derived from global data encompassing close to 400,000 employees across nearly 200 organisations, zeroes in on the significant hurdles and prospects for property stakeholders. Through the analysis of end-user sentiment and preferences, the State of REX report acts as an essential guide for navigating the intricate landscape of the real estate industry, spotlighting pivotal trends and the essentials for office spaces in 2024.
The industry faces an uphill battle with high vacancy rates and slow economic growth, largely attributed to the scarcity of quality workspaces. This deficit is a prominent productivity barrier for approximately one in four employees worldwide, potentially hampering the transition to efficient work models.
Chase Garbarino, co-founder and CEO at HqO, emphasised the critical juncture at which the real estate industry stands: “The industry is on a knife edge right now. While the overall economic picture is challenging, there are opportunities for owners and operators who focus on providing high-quality, real estate experiences within their spaces to succeed,” said Garbarino. “This year’s REX report underscores a crucial point: organisations need to not only measure and understand the preferences and sentiments of end-users of their real estate, but leverage those to create outstanding experiences. We now know, for example, that over two-thirds of employees agree that their workplace design contributes to their enjoyment and engagement when in the office. This is a clear indication that a positive real estate experience is vital to encouraging people into the office.”
Samuel Warren, VP (EMEA) of HqO, added: “Our State of REX report paints a particularly troubling picture for the real estate sector. Today, over 80% of EMEA employees agree that the design of their workplace is important to them, but 34% don’t believe their workplace enables them to work productively. If businesses are to grow and succeed, then they need to understand their real estate end-users’ experience, and make data-driven decisions to improve them.”
The report also highlights the increasing emphasis on sustainability among occupiers and their employees, noting that while 69% of employees want companies to invest in sustainability efforts, nearly half (43%) do not believe their workplace contributes to environmental sustainability. It suggests that closing this gap requires investments in decarbonisation and operating buildings with greater efficiency.
“Adopting a customer-centric, data-driven approach doesn’t just translate to better decision making about the design and management of real estate experiences for the end-user; it enables owners and operators to impact their bottom line by driving tenant retention, leasing velocity, CapEx and OpEx optimisation, and increased NOI,” Garbarino noted.
The State of REX compiles data gathered by HqO’s Intelligence product suite, which assesses the health and performance of a customer’s experience within a property. This methodology has solicited feedback from over 1.8 million employees from 8,000 workspaces over the last decade.
