News & Blog Office Attendance is Rising, but Not for all Employees The combination of these trends has led to significant milestones in post-pandemic office attendance, though certain metro areas and employees are bucking the overall trend. According to Placer.ai’s Office Building Index, which analyzed foot traffic from over 1,000 office buildings nationwide, office visits in August reached 68.8% of August 2019... Manhattan Office Vacancy Falls as Q3 Leasing Activity Increases Manhattan’s office leasing market had a strong third quarter, with leasing activity surging and vacancy rates dropping, according to a new report from Avison Young. Leasing reached 23.1 million square feet, a 25.1% increase from the same period last year. The quarter saw 25 transactions over 100,000 square feet, up... Study finds New York Retail Availability Hits Record Low New York’s office sector continues to face high vacancy rates, but the retail market is seeing a stronger recovery from the pandemic. According to a JLL study, retail availability in prime New York corridors fell to 14.7% in Q3, down from a peak of 28% in 2021 and below the... Another Tech Giant is Requiring Some Employees to Return to the Office Full-Time Following Amazon’s decision to return to a full in-person workweek, some of the world’s largest tech companies are increasingly pushing employees back to the office, as executives grow less fond of remote or hybrid work models. Dell Technologies is the latest to implement a stricter return-to-office policy, requiring its sales... Why Are Office Rents Still Rising? It’s Complicated When office vacancy rates hit record highs and tenants return space in large numbers, you’d expect rental rates to drop. But today’s reality defies that logic. Despite unprecedented vacancies and stagnant demand, landlords are still raising office rents. In past real estate cycles, rising vacancies led to rent cuts as... Why EQT Exeter and Other Property Investors Call This a ‘Compelling Time’ to Buy For insight into the recent uptick in commercial real estate deals, consider EQT Exeter, the real estate division of Swedish investment giant EQT AB and one of the world’s largest industrial property owners. The firm has been actively pursuing acquisitions, spurred by the Federal Reserve’s recent interest rate cut amid... Real Estate Industry Pushes Back on Broker Fees New York City renters can now bid farewell to broker fees. The City Council voted 42-8 to pass a bill prohibiting brokers from charging fees to renters when representing a landlord exclusively. Violators face fines of up to $2,000. This shifts the cost of broker fees—typically one month’s rent—from renters... Real Estate Heirs Break the Cardinal Rule: Never Sell William Rudin, heir to one of New York City’s top real estate dynasties, grew up with a cardinal rule his grandfather followed to build a property empire: Never sell. Despite economic downturns, Rudin believed office values and cash flows would always recover as workers returned in good times. However, last... NYC Leasing Controversy Reveals Office Surplus New York Mayor Eric Adams’s challenges grew last month when the Manhattan district attorney launched an investigation into the agency managing the city’s $1.5 billion real estate portfolio. On Tuesday, City Council members criticized two Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) officials over a subordinate’s decision to approve several commercial... Park Avenue Office Availability Hits 6-Year Low Park Avenue, one of New York City’s prime corporate corridors, is making a strong comeback after the pandemic downturn. The office availability rate fell to 8.2% in the fourth quarter of 2024 — the lowest level since 2018 — according to a report by Avison Young. This marks a sharp... Manhattan Retail Leasing Strong, Rent Growth Slow Manhattan’s retail leasing market experienced a strong rebound in the second half of 2024, driven by a combination of factors, including a thriving job market, near-record levels of tourism, and a steady return to office occupancy, according to the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY). This robust activity contributed... Office Market Signals End to NYC’s Return-to-Office Push The commercial real estate industry has long sought signs of stability and growth in the office market. At Commercial Observer’s Fall State of Office Forum, Ben Brown, managing partner and head of Americas real estate at Brookfield Asset Management, highlighted recent positive momentum in the sector. Following opening remarks from... Amazon Finalizes Manhattan Office Lease Amazon has signed one of Manhattan’s largest office leases of 2024 as it rapidly expands its footprint in New York and beyond. To accommodate a growing in-office workforce, the tech giant leased 330,000 square feet across floors 3 to 11 at 10 Bryant Park (formerly HSBC Tower) in a 15-year... City Council Passes Zoning Change to Allow for NYC Casino The New York City Council paved the way for prospective casino developers by passing a bill on Thursday that permits zoning changes for state-approved gaming facilities. Under this legislation, developers awarded one of the three downstate casino licenses will have the opportunity to secure a zoning amendment, allowing them to... NYC Offices Turning into Residential Conversions New Yorkers often joke about living at the office, but new data from the Department of City Planning suggests this could soon be a reality for some. According to the Gothamist, 64 office owners have shown interest in the Office Conversion Accelerator Program, which facilitates converting offices into residential spaces.... Rising Risk in Office Lease Exposure The long-term nature of office leasing has delayed the market’s adjustment to the changes in office utilization triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing building owners to maintain some income from existing tenants. However, with the demand for office space still slow to recover, the upcoming lease expiration dates indicate potential... FIRE Tenants in Manhattan Show Slower Expansion The financial industry, a cornerstone of New York City’s economy for more than a generation, is showing signs of reducing its demand for New York offices. From the pre-pandemic years of 2017, 2018, and 2019 to the pandemic-shadowed years of 2020 to 2023, the square footage of Manhattan renewals and... NYC Retail Market Reels After Smoke Shop Crackdown Roll Up Nation vanished from NoHo last month, leaving behind only an expensive sound system, a few stray rolling papers, and a 1,927-square-foot epoxy mural on the ground floor retail space at 738 Broadway. The storefront, located directly above the Eighth Street/NYU stop on the R train, is now available... Traffic Problems in Manhattan The New York governor’s decision to withdraw support from a Manhattan tolling program, aimed at easing traffic and generating $1 billion annually for the transit system, has alienated not only the business community and commercial real estate but also lawmakers, advocates, and millions of daily transit users in New York....
