Britain | End of the space race

The decline in remote working hits Britain’s housing market

A return to the office means a return to town

Sky Gardens/Midland Mills under construction in Leeds.
Photograph: Alamy

BRITONS ARE back in the office—and not just because a new year has begun. Five years after the start of the pandemic, ever more employers are demanding that their staff come in three, four or even five days a week, forcing many to abandon home offices eagerly acquired, furnished and decorated during lockdown. That turn in the trend is showing in Britain’s housing market. Properties, often large ones outside London, bought and built in the hope that covid had consigned commuting to the past, no longer look so desirable.

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This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “End of the space race”

From the January 11th 2025 edition

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