In North Jersey, Busiest Office-Leasing Since Pre-Lehman
By Jotham Sederstrom April 20, 2011 8:22 pm
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Even as Manhattan’s commercial real estate rebounds from the economic collapse at a much faster clip than the rest of the country, steep pricing has also caused tenants to flee to North Jersey, which this week tallied its highest first-quarter office-leasing velocity since the height of the market in 2007.
Indeed, according to a quarterly report by CB Richard Ellis, the Garden State’s waterfront stood out, boasting half of North Jersey’s combined market activity for the first three months of 2011. The waterfront area code recorded 409,577 square feet of leasing activity during that period, followed by the area along Route 287/78, which saw 330,068 square feet of activity. Both areas drew, among others, tenants looking for alternatives to New York, where average rents are typically higher than the $24.46 per square foot in the waterfront district, brokers said.
“The waterfront submarket is New Jersey’s big success story, experiencing consistent tenant demand over the last four quarters with both strong leasing and renewal activity,” Jeff Hipschman, a senior managing director at CBRE, said in a statement. “The waterfront is not only considered an alternative to New York City, but also a primary location option for many corporations.”
jsederstrom@observer.com
