Ethiopia’s capital city is the most affordable location to invest in commercial property in Africa, while Morocco is home to some of the region’s most expensive office space, according to new data released today by global real estate portal Lamudi.

Prices for office space in the Summit area of Addis Ababa average 1039.61 Ethiopian birr, equivalent to just over US$50 per square meter. In contrast, offices in the Guéliz area of Marrakech in Morocco are priced at US$2300 per square meter on average.

The commercial real estate ranking is based on average prices per square meter drawn from the sales price of listings on the Lamudi website, which covers more than 30 countries in the emerging markets. The top five list takes into account both affordability as well as the available supply of commercial property in each area to determine the leading locations to invest in office space outside of traditional central business districts.

Westlands, an affluent area in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, claims second spot on the list of top locations to invest in office space. Buying an office in the area, where business owners can find some of the most affordable commercial property outside of the city’s central business district, costs an average US$664.23.

Rounding out the top five locations to buy office space in Africa are: Anthony in Lagos, Nigeria (US$770.16 per sqm); the port city of Zarzis in Tunisia (US$871.28 per sqm); and Béjaia, a port in Algeria (US$1004.98 per sqm).

Africa’s top locations to invest in office space

Area	Country	Price per square meter (local currency)	Price per square meter (USD)
Summit, Addis Ababa	Ethiopia	1039.61	50.83
Westlands, Nairobi	Kenya	61538.46	664.23
Anthony, Lagos	Nigeria	153301.89	770.16
Zarzis	Tunisia	1700	871.28
Béjaia	Algeria	98039.22	1004.98

 

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