When I started in commercial property back in the early 1990s, the world looked very different. Commercial leases were 25 years long, with five-yearly upward-only rent reviews. It was, frankly, a landlord’s market. If you owned commercial property, you were in the driving seat. Tenants signed up and stuck around. Rent only ever went one way - up. And whether you bought an office, a shop, or a warehouse, you couldn’t really lose.

Fast forward 30 years, and that landscape has completely changed. Today’s commercial market is far more dynamic - and far less forgiving. Some investors are making fortunes, while others are being left with empty buildings and dwindling returns. The key difference? It’s no longer landlord-led. It’s occupier-led. Supply and demand - what tenants actually want - dictates the winners and losers.

And this is where the opportunity lies. For the clued-up investor, the shift opens doors to less traditional, more innovative models of commercial real estate. You don’t have to be restricted to the old office-retail-industrial categories, with the whole building let to one tenant. The market is wide open if you know where to look.

1. Managed Offices: Beyond the “WeWork Effect”
In the 1990s, office tenants were tied into decades-long leases. Now? Businesses want flexibility. Start-ups don’t know what size team they’ll have in six months, let alone six years.

Even established companies don’t want to lock in overheads when the economy feels uncertain. Add the drive for blue chips to move to Grade A, high-spec offices and the rest of the office market is left behind.

Enter managed offices. Think of them as a halfway house between a serviced office and a traditional lease. Tenants get shorter, more flexible agreements, (sometimes) bundled services, and (always) ready-to-go space without the capital outlay. Landlords get higher yields because they’re effectively offering a premium ‘flexible’ product rather than just four walls.