Perth's Office Flight: How the Commercial Property Exodus is Rewriting the Talent Playbook

Perth's commercial property market is undergoing a seismic shift, and the fallout is reshaping how companies recruit, where workers want to be based, and which neighbourhoods are thriving or struggling.

The trend is unmistakable: major corporates are downsizing their footprint in traditional office towers along St Georges Terrace and consolidating into hybrid models or relocating to secondary precincts. Average CBD office vacancy rates have climbed to 14.2 per cent—the highest in a decade—while asking rents have stalled at around $285 per square metre annually, compared to $310 just 18 months ago.

The implications for Perth's talent market are profound. Companies once anchored to prestige addresses in the heart of the CBD are now spreading across the city. Some are moving to business parks in Subiaco and Joondalup, where modern purpose-built facilities offer better value and flexibility. Others are embracing remote-first models entirely, fundamentally changing what "commuting to work" means for thousands of professionals.

"We're seeing employers compete for talent in ways they didn't before," says one recruitment specialist observing the market. Office location is no longer a given perk—instead, flexibility, connectivity, and proximity to lifestyle amenities are emerging as the real differentiators. Workers are voting with their feet, with inner suburbs like Northbridge and East Perth gaining appeal precisely because they offer mixed-use precincts where office, retail, and residential overlap.

The ripple effects are visible across neighbourhoods. Subiaco's office market has absorbed some of the CBD's departing tenants, while underutilised heritage buildings in Barrack Street and Hay Street present both challenge and opportunity for developers. Some are converting office stock into residential apartments—a transformation that could alter the demographic makeup of the CBD itself.

For jobseekers, this fragmentation presents both opportunity and complexity. Entry-level professionals once converged on the CBD; now they're scattered across multiple hubs, each with different transport links, cost-of-living realities, and workplace cultures. Companies struggling to fill roles face a more dispersed talent pool, particularly for junior positions where location flexibility is less common.

The broader question looming: will Perth's office market stabilise at a new equilibrium, or does the current trajectory signal a longer structural decline? Either way, the city's employment landscape will look markedly different in five years than it does today. For jobseekers and employers alike, adaptability is no longer optional.

This article was compiled by AI from the sources linked above and screened before publishing. See our editorial standards.