Teleworking and the Demand for Office Space in Lagos Island, Nigeria

Abstract

The influence of the developments in information and communication technologies (ICT) on real property market is becoming an important issue for academic discussion. This paper therefore, examined the effects of teleworking on the demand for office space in Lagos Island, Nigeria. With a random sample of 216 office users, the study showed that the long commuting time and cost coupled with the benefits of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), would result into Teleworking, reduction in the number of staff employed by their organisations and consequently a reduction in per square meter of office space required. In addition ,the study showed that the rent being paid is not a significant factor influencing the propensity to telework, but the traditional '8-to-5' office commuting time would however, become flexible. Keywords: ICT, Teleworking, Commuting and space demand