Are structural issues distorting Melbourne’s vacancy?

Melbourne's CBD office vacancy stood at 19.7% as of Q1 2026, but JLL analysis distinguishes between frictional, entrenched, and structural vacancy, identifying approximately 4.0% of secondary stock as structurally vacant and 6.0% of prime stock as entrenched vacant, suggesting only 9.7% of the headline figure represents genuinely competitive space. The research attributes elevated vacancy primarily to supply-driven factors, with 675,000 square meters of new office space completed between Q1 2020 and Q1 2026 (12.5% of total stock), and identifies building obsolescence as a key driver, with older assets from the 1980s or earlier representing 58.4% of secondary stock and containing 120,500 square meters of structural vacancy concentrated in the Western Core precinct.