South Africa's Office Vacancy Rate Falls to Six-Year Low, SAPOA Data Shows

South Africa's office vacancy rate fell to 11.8% in the third quarter of 2026, according to the latest figures from the South African Property Owners Association (SAPOA). That is five percentage points below the 16.8% peak recorded in mid-2022 during the Covid-19 pandemic.

While there has been a sustained return to the office, working from home for part of the week remains widespread. SAPOA highlighted the gap between higher- and lower-quality space, saying "the persistent vacancy gap between prime and secondary stock highlights the continued importance of quality, location and building competitiveness." Countrywide, A-grade office vacancies fell to 9.5%, while B-grade vacancies stood at 15.9%.

The improvement was uneven across major centres. Cape Town recorded the lowest vacancy rate at 6.9%, followed by Tshwane at 8.9% and Durban at 9.3%. Johannesburg lagged at 14.7%, more than double the rate in Cape Town.

Property economist and Emeritus Associate Professor at the University of Cape Town, Francois Viruly, said the market was shifting back toward equilibrium but remained patchy. "From an occupier perspective, you may not need as much space or you may have a different type of space. We saw how the shopping centres moved out of our CBDs and now we're starting to see that with the office as well, in the suburbs. So the offering is different," he said.

Viruly added that occupiers increasingly favour higher-quality space, comparing future office investment to the hospitality sector. "I've often argued that the office environment or office investments are going to start looking like hotel groups — you're going to have to offer the cups of coffee, an environment which is very different from the past, where you just put some desks down," he said.