Office occupancy hits new record, but it's not that high
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Office occupancy hit 54.2% in January, per the latest swipe data from Kastle Systems, a post-pandemic record high, but not much to write home about (in fact, many of you are probably working at home and reading this).
Why it matters: The return-to-office push by many of the nation's employers, now including the White House, is slowly getting folks back to in-person work, but it's becoming clear that we are in a new world of hybrid work.
Where it stands: Occupancy rates vary widely, depending on the day of the week.
- On Tuesday, during the last week of January, the rate was 63.4%. On Friday, when few people show up in person, the number fell to 36.7%.
The big picture: There are plenty of companies sticking with flexible work arrangements, like the Big Four accounting firms — KPMG, Deloitte, Ernst & Young and PwC — which are looking for way to attract workers amid a shortage of CPAs, as Bloomberg noted Wednesday.
- Citi is also sticking with hybrid work, the FT reported this week.
Zoom in: A few cities hit record post-pandemic office occupancy rates, including Houston at 64.9% and Philadelphia at 44%.
Between the lines: D.C. reached a high of 51.5% occupancy, as the White House ordered federal employees back to the office.
- Getting more of those folks to do in-person work might be tricky. The Washington Post reported that there is not enough office space for all these workers to use.
- As Axios's Sami Sparber reported Tuesday, the country's biggest office leases actually got a bit bigger last year, as companies start nudging back toward in-person work.
The bottom line: "As companies continue to shift their policies to require more days a week in the office, we expect that average to continue to rise," Haniel Lynn, Kastle CEO, said in an email.
- Cities like Chicago and Houston now see more than 70% occupancy on certain days of the week, he said.
