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Hybrid work, rising costs, and changing lifestyle priorities are reshaping how and where we work. This means the traditional CBD is no longer the default.
Australia’s office market is being reshaped by two powerful forces: the rise of hybrid work and the urgency of climate goals.
Together, they are redefining what makes a workplace valuable: not just to investors and landlords, but also to employees choosing whether the trip to the office is worth their time.
The Human-Centered Office Experience
The answer is no longer simply about location or the size of the floorplate.
High-performing offices are expected to deliver on three fronts: sustainability, adaptability, and human experience. Those that fail risk becoming stranded assets in a market where tenants, employees and investors are demanding more.
Today’s workforce expects more from their office than just a desk and meeting room. Spaces designed for collaboration, wellness, and social connection are outperforming sterile, traditional formats.
Lifestyle precincts often provide integrated amenities; cafés, gyms, childcare, green spaces – that enhance the day-to-day experience. By contrast, CBD towers that fail to deliver on these experiential needs risk being left behind.
Commuting and Location Choices
The daily commute remains one of the most decisive factors influencing office demand. Workers are increasingly reluctant to return to long, congested commutes into central CBDs, particularly as hybrid work models remain entrenched.
This shift is driving interest in lifestyle precincts and suburban hubs, where offices are closer to where people live, shop, and socialise. Convenience and accessibility are now key levers in tenant attraction and retention.
What Workers Want
The post-pandemic office must reflect the aspirations of its users. Workers are prioritising flexibility, health, and connection. They value environments that blend work with lifestyle: light-filled spaces, biophilic design, informal breakout areas, and seamless tech integration.
Importantly, offices are no longer judged on their prestige alone; they must support wellbeing and a balanced life.
“High-performing offices now need a clear ‘why’,” Felicity Marshall, head of Pacific workplace consulting at CBRE says. “They enable employees to be as or more productive than they are at home and provide spaces that support all modes of work, not just collaboration.”
This shift is pushing employers to see offices as strategic levers for culture and talent. Workplaces are increasingly designed to reflect brand values, support diverse workstyles and foster inclusion.
With Gen Z now a larger share of the workforce than Baby Boomers, workplaces also give organisations an opportunity to demonstrate their values in practice.
Investment and Asset Trends
For investors, the divergence between CBD assets and lifestyle-precinct offices is becoming more pronounced. Premium CBD towers with strong amenity offerings will hold their appeal, but secondary stock faces pressure from rising vacancy rates and tenant downsizing.
Meanwhile, well-positioned suburban, CBD fringe and lifestyle-oriented assets are attracting attention for their resilience and alignment with worker preferences. The long-term trend suggests that human-focused, experience-rich precincts will drive demand and capital growth.
Certifications such as Green Star, NABERS and the WELL Building Standard are increasingly central to how offices are assessed.
Together, they provide a comprehensive framework for offices that are sustainable, efficient and people centered.
For premium landlords, the shift to hybrid and net zero is accelerating what some describe as the “flight to experience”.
