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LOWER MANHATTAN REAL ESTATE MARKET OVERVIEW
Q3 2016
COMMERCIAL OFFICE MARKET LOWER MANHATTAN TENANTS DEEPENED ROOTS While total activity has slowed this year, a strong set of Lower Manhattan’s existing tenants have recommitted to remain in Lower Manhattan and, in some cases, expand throughout 2016. This market logged 846,000 square feet of new leasing activity in the third quarter, according to CBRE, bringing year-to-date activity to 2.8 million square feet. Lower Manhattan is down 15% compared to this time last year, but both Midtown and Midtown South saw notably larger decreases, 20% and 29%, respectively.
Zurich America Insurance Company, a Switzerland-based insurance firm, signed the largest deal of the quarter, committing to move its New York headquarters from 1 Liberty Plaza to 131,856 square feet in 4 World Trade Center. The second largest deal of the quarter also represented a move within Lower Manhattan: the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will be consolidating its Lower Manhattan offices in a 57,245-square-foot office in 80 Pine Street.
2016 has been a strong year so far for top leases from existing tenants, especially from the FIRE sector. More than half of the top 20 deals year to date have been taken by tenants moving to new offices within Lower Manhattan or expanding; this represents 848,000 square feet of transactions, an increase of nearly 15% from this type of deal activity in the same period in 2015. In addition, three out of the seven deals signed year to date, representing new activity over 50,000 square feet, were committments from the FIRE sector. Third quarter activity strengthened these trends.
The FIRE sector dominated this quarter’s top deals as well as in-district moves and expansions and made up more than 28% of all new leasing activity, according to Jones Lang LaSalle. 4 World Trade Center, in particular, benefitted from these types of deals. In addition to Zurich, Silverstein Properties also signed a deal with Global Atlantic Financial Company, a financial services company, to open a second office in 44,711 square feet (which is an expansion of its current 20,326-square-foot office) in 7 World Trade Center. Validus Group, a Bermuda-based insurance firm, completed
TOP 20 DEALS BY TRANSACTION TYPE AND SF, YTD 2014 - 2016 Source: CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield, Jones Lang Lasalle & Colliers International
3.5 Million
Square Feet
3 Million
While large relocations are down, moves within Lower Manhattan and expansions among top deals are up.
2.5 Million 1,670,651
231,489
2 Million
397,315 1.5 Million
848K
470,957 1 Million
500,000
0
160,960
632K In-district Moves & Expansions
276,969 462,224
818,960
450,538
469,653
739K
1,055,703
264,714 2014 Q1-Q3 Relocation
2015 Q1-Q3 Expansion
Moving within LM
2016 Q1-Q3 Renewal
New LM Location
Up
Moving Within LM
Lower Manhattan Real Estate Market Overview| Q2 2016
1 Renewal 49.4%