Office space in Dublin’s central business district (CBD) is at a premium, with demand running at its strongest since 2007 and rents up substantially, according to a report by DTZ Sherry Fitzgerald.

“Prime Dublin CBD rents stood at €592 per sq m at end 2015, representing a 90% increase since the trough of the market in early 2013,” said Marian Finnegan, chief economist with the property group. The year-on-year increase was 14%.

This inflation in rents plus pressure on supply has led to a redistribution of occupiers away from the CBD towards the secondary and suburban markets.

As the same trends are already evident in other urban centres, the upward pressure on rents seen in the Dublin market for two years is likely to spread to other regional centres. Sherry Fitz’s current forecast suggests double digit rental growth in the Cork, Limerick and Galway markets.

Just under 300,000 sq m of office accommodation was taken up in the four regional office markets during 2015. Occupier demand was running 25% higher relative to the 10-year average.

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Leasing activity outside Dublin was robust, up 10% year on year. Activity was strongest in Limerick, supported by a number of large deals, most notably the occupation of 2,500 sq m in Thomas Street by Uber, the IT platform company.

After nearly a decade of oversupply, supply levels continued to decline and vacancy levels fell in all four regions. While supply remains strong in Limerick and Cork, availability has returned to more normal levels in Dublin, but with an acute shortage of supply in Galway.