None of us expected the full extent of the lockdowns of 2020. Suddenly, we were spending all our time at home and the flaws were almost impossible to ignore. When your home becomes your office, your playground, your pub, it can be pretty intense. For many city centre dwellers, it brought some of the downsides into stark reality.
Enquiries from residents in centres about village living rose by a huge 126% in the summer of 2020. But what does this all mean for the future of city centre living?
The impact of remote working
Many businesses have decided to adopt remote and flexible working permanently following the pandemic. Large numbers of workers realised that there was in fact little to no need for them to commute to and from the office in order to carry out their work successfully.
For those people who have stayed in city centres to be a convenient distance away from work, there was now no need. Those paying a premium price for central locations found they could access a lot more space further afield in the suburbs. And with the demand for office and garden space increasing exponentially over the last year, who can blame them for making the move?
A change of perspective
All of our lives have dramatically changed since the Coronavirus pandemic. For many, it has been the catalyst for a big shift in perspective. We’ve all had time to evaluate what’s important - our health, spending quality time with the people we love and doing the things we enjoy.
One particular article from The Guardian spoke to a number of former die-hard city residents who have become countryside converts in the last year. A common theme throughout was realising that the hustle and bustle and the constant nightlife wasn’t necessarily the be all and end all. Access to nature and improved housing prospects have been a huge draw to large numbers of millennials.
Is city centre living dead?
The simple answer is no. Since the lockdown restrictions have started to ease, there has been an increase in people looking to move back to the activity that a city centre offers. According to the Buy Association, some cities have seen over 100% in the number of rental enquiries. Clearly, residents are itching to be back in the middle of things with access to bars, restaurants, shops and other activities.
With students in particular set to be able to return to their campuses come September, it’s likely these numbers will continue to rise.
With a growing number of businesses deciding to terminate their office leases, it’s no wonder the number of workers specifically that are leaving for the suburbs and the countryside is growing. However, as long as there’s an appetite for nightlife and a fast paced city centre social life, there will be demand for city centre accommodation.
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