As we covered in our recently release Office National Leasing Feature, Canberra's office leasing market is experiencing a notable uplift, driven by sustained demand from Commonwealth agencies and their contractor networks. What we're seeing on the ground is consistent inspection activity from government and aligned sectors, with a clear preference for modern, efficient buildings that meet evolving compliance and sustainability benchmarks.

Occupiers are planning with long-term certainty, and institutional landlords who can deliver on these expectations are well-positioned to secure stable, high-quality tenants. The Commonwealth's Net Zero in Government Operations Strategy 2030 has become a key reference point in leasing discussions, with sustainability and electrification targets now embedded in both enquiry and transaction stages. The ACT Government operates on comparable standards, but is pushing for electrification on a much sharper timeframe.

These benchmarks are beginning to influence the contractor space as well, with private occupiers increasingly aligning their standards to those of their major client, the Commonwealth. This shift is creating a ripple effect across the market, raising the bar for environmental performance and compliance.

Security compliance is also shaping building design and upgrades. The Protective Security Policy Framework (PSPF) outlines what individual government entities must do to protect their people, information and resources. Much of the infrastructure required to meet these standards is costly to retrofit, making it more efficient to incorporate these features during initial development. Depending on the level of security required, this could include slab-to-slab intertenancy walls, race gates, or even restrictions on smart devices within certain tenancy zones.

Modern, efficient buildings are gaining traction not just for compliance reasons, but because they offer better workplaces. The Commonwealth, like any major organisation, wants to attract and retain talent by providing high-quality environments. That often means shifting out of older assets and into buildings that are energy-efficient, secure, and future-ready.

Institutional landlords have responded proactively. Many began adapting their portfolios the moment the 2030 strategy was released. In some cases, this has involved significant capital works and in others, it's been a matter of fine-tuning building operations to meet new standards.

Compared to other capital cities, Canberra is ahead of the curve. sustainability compliance is a prerequisite for funding approval through central government channels, and almost all existing asset owners are actively addressing this. The availability of development sites within the CBD also gives Canberra a unique advantage as new buildings can be designed to meet or exceed these standards more readily than in land-constrained cities.

Looking ahead, the opportunity for landlords and developers to future-proof assets through sustainability and sustainability-led strategies is clear. The Commonwealth sets the market standard in Canberra, and they're transparent about their expectations. These standards are here to stay, and only likely to increase.