RESHAPING THE CITY: PERTH
Two clear spatial preferences are shaping Perth’s CBD: a pull toward the core and a preference for higher floors.
St Georges Terrace remains the CBD’s traditional spine and a key location for much of the prime-grade stock, particularly along and south of the street. But performance is defined not by address alone – the strongest outcomes are concentrated within the Statistical Division 3 area, as defined by the Property Council of Australia, centred north of Elizabeth Quay and bounded by St Georges Terrace, Mounts Bay Road, Mill Street and The Esplanade. This concentration illustrates the core’s advantage. Despite accounting for just over half of total CBD stock (52%), its vacancy share sits lower at 47%. Since 2020, it has absorbed around 118,000 sqm of demand, while non-core areas collectively lost about 47,000 sqm of demand. The contrast is sharper in prime stock: the core holds 56% of space but only 29% of vacancy, alongside roughly 71,000 sqm of net absorption, compared with a -18,000 sqm outcome for non-core prime assets.
Between early 2024 and 2025, Perth’s vacancy map has started to be redrawn, marking a new phase of market polarisation. The city’s core remains resilient, while rising vacancies north of St Georges Terrace reaffirm its long-standing role as the city’s natural fault line. Beyond the terrace, emerging clusters of empty space point to the early signs of structural vacancy – particularly across fringe precincts where tenant demand has thinned. This shift is most visible in the prime market, where performance increasingly hinges on proximity and positioning. Vacancy is drifting outward
02 CORE STRENGTH: WHERE VACANCY FLOWS
from the core, extending west into Statistical Division 2 and east from
Division 3 into Divisions 1 and 4, with new pockets now appearing in Division 5. The message is clear: centrality is once again the market’s key differentiator. Core assets continue to capture demand and maintain absorption, while non-core precincts shoulder an outsized share of vacancy that will take longer to resolve.
CHART 1
PERTH CBD CORE VS NON-CORE
80%
160,000
60%
120,000
40%
80,000
20%
40,000
0%
0
-20%
-40,000
-40%
-80,000
-60%
-120,000
-80%
-160,000
Total
Prime
Total
Prime
Core
Non Core
Share of Stock
Share of Vacancy
Net Absorption since 2020 (RHS)
Source: PCA, Cushman & Wakefield Research
CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD | 7
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