The survey found that 80% of businesses have downsized since the start of the pandemic, with a further 75% planning to reduce their office square footage next year.
Over 60% of companies who responded to the survey said they are paying $50 or more per square foot of their office space. As a result, over two-thirds plan to reduce their office space by 50% or more with almost a third planning to right-size their office by a quarter or less.
At the same time, 88% of companies are mandating that staff work a certain number of days in the office, with 52% mandating at least four days a week in the office.
The return-to-office mandate is an effort by business owners to ensure they’re getting the most out of office space given the high costs associated with renting.
However, 40% of respondents in the survey said that they’re only utilizing half of their available office space or less, and only 28% said they’re using 100% of their space.
Although 42% are hopeful that offices will go back to pre-pandemic levels of attendance, 58% are sure that that volume of office attendance is a thing of the past.