0 Boston Office Market Transitions out of Recovery

Posted on January 8, 2014 by Wil Catlin

The Boston office market is in a state of recovery and rents are continuing upward. Within the Class B market, Boston is experiencing reduced vacancy as companies are continuing to seek out value options. Buildings in the Downtown Crossing Class B market have seen strong rent growth in 2013 and are now priced in the low $30’s PSF.

According to the BBJ “the overall amount of available space [in Boston], including sublease space, rose to 18.3 percent in Q4, up from 16.7 in Q4 of 2012. That change reflects nearly 300,000 square feet of negative absorption.”

Additional information is available on the Boston Business Journal website.

0 Boston Office Market Shifts to the Financial District

Posted on January 8, 2014 by Wil Catlin

The Downtown Boston Office Market continues to be strong as firms seek better value options than the high-priced Seaport or Back Bay submarkets. Pricing in the Class B market is still in the low-to-mid $30’s PSF downtown, while the Seaport has pushed into the low to mid $40’s.

B&T recently reported that “the popularity of the Seaport and Back Bay, where office building vacancy rates have been at historical lows in recent months, has been a boon to the city’s traditionally staid, button-down financial center, where younger and tech-related firms have opened up shop.”

Additional information is available on the Banker & Tradesman website.

0 Builders Consider Wind Power

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker & Tradesman

As we all try harder to recycle and become a greener society, one group has looked up. Way up. Is it possible and feasible to have wind farms atop office towers? At a cost, yes; but is there an adequate return on investment?

Banker & Tradesman recently reported on a Cambridge-based startup that is exploring the use of wind power on an office tower:

One such cleantech startup based in Cambridge has designed its own version of a vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT) that stands from 26 to 40 feet tall, with a 20-foot diameter, a far cry from the turbines in, say, Falmouth, where the towers rise more than 260 feet into the air and can be seen for miles around…But instead of the turbines themselves being towers, Eastern Wind Power’s founders want to put their turbines on top of existing and new urban office towers.

The full article on sustainable office towers is available on B&T.

0 Fenway Center Hits Roadblocks

Posted on October 9, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Architects rendering of Fenway Center in Boston

Credit: The Architectural Team via Boston Business Journal

Does building over the Turnpike have to make roadblocks? Projects of this nature — like Fenway Center — simply take time and patience.

Amid a number of delays, the BBJ has directed it’s readers to one of the project’s positives to date:

“one part of the development is nearing completion. The new $13.5 million Yawkey Commuter Rail Station reconstruction project, a major component of the development paid for by the state, is underway and ahead of schedule and could be open in a few months.”

The full article is posted on the Boston Business Journal

0 The Importance of Business Collaboration

Posted on August 20, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Office building on State Street in Boston

255 State Street in Boston

There is something to be said for water bubbler conversations, old fashion face time. In the era of telecommuting and Aps for this and Aps for that companies are trying to their staff be in a position to share ideas with their peers. The idea seems simple enough, but how do you make it a reality? The question I have for you is do you know what your neighbor does?

A Boston Globe article about business collaboration stresses the advantage of physical networking, even in a world of virtual industry:

“Here’s how it’s supposed to work: Two years ago, Guzzi called Niraj Shah, the cofounder and chief executive of Wayfair, a Boston-based furniture and home goods Internet retailer that generates more sales than Crate and Barrel online. They met over breakfast at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel’s Asana, where Guzzi persuaded Shah to join the chamber. The chamber landed a star e-commerce company, one that now employs more than 900 people in Boston — a 50 percent increase in just a couple of years. Wayfair got fresh connections and a far stronger voice in Boston’s business community.”

The full globe editorial is available on their website: Bostonglobe.com

0 Office Prices Soaring in Boston’s Innovation District

Posted on August 14, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Office rents have increased in excess of 40 percent in the last two years in the Innovation District. What will happen as those leases start to roll in 2014, will those tenants be able to afford the new rents?

Credit: InnovationDistrict.org

A recent editorial in the Boston Globe noted the challenges facing small businesses and occupants of the Innovation District:

“The Innovation District is in danger of becoming a top-heavy boutique neighborhood because it targets price-sensitive businesses, but has no way of providing stable rents. There’s no consensus about who should pay to keep office rents affordable at the very low end — developers, large companies, area institutions, or the city itself could all conceivably handle the job — and, even if consensus did exist, there’s no means of enforcing it.”

Jump over to the BostonGlobe.com for the full article.

Related Office Listings
South Boston Waterfront Real Estate

0 Short-Term Retail Leases: The New Commercial Real Estate Trend?

Posted on August 7, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Business Journal

This is a creative way on thinking of trying to full some of our retail vacancy’s around the city. Perhaps this would be better to put into context, like a retailer that focus on a holiday event like Halloween. It would be tough to support that annually, but for the 90 days prior to the holiday, it might be a great solution. This would also allow the Landlord to continue to market the space to a more permanent retailer. Some of the concerns might be the transactions costs of producing a lease agreement along with the lender’s concern about being a transient building.

Banker & Tradesman spoke with Storefront co-founder Tristan Pollock, noting “the concept is the commercial real estate equivalent of AirBNB, the popular website that allows consumers to find vacation rentals or apartments for the short term…Pollock said that the service would tackle a problem that plagues the commercial real estate industry across the country: the retail space vacancy rate is higher than it’s ever been (10 percent on average). It would also make it easier for potential tenants to connect with property owners.”

The complete article, and additional commentary from Storefront co-founder Tristan Pollock, are available on B&T: short-term leases for retail outlets

0 Mayor Menino’s Departure to Impact Boston Real Estate

Posted on July 13, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Twitter.com @mayortommenino

Should we expect the new mayor of Boston address commercial development differently in the city? YES. We can agree or disagree with Mayor Menino, but change is coming.

The Boston Business Journal alluded to the prospective impact of Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s departure on the Boston real estate market:

“developers are salivating at the prospect that a new mayor will jump-start stalled projects that have been shunned by Mayor Thomas M. Menino…a handful of proposed commercial real estate projects have faced roadblocks at City Hall…But all that could change in January when Menino retires, a move that could also lead to changes at the top of the Boston Redevelopment Authority.”

You can read the full article on the Boston Business Journal’s website.

0 40 Broad Street Under Agreement

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Wil Catlin

40 Broad Street office building in the Boston Financial District

Photo Credit: Boston Business Journal

The Class B office market continues to see trades within the Financial District; 40 Broad will be traded for $378 PSF. The Financial District has seen tremendous absorption over the last 4 quarters within the Class A low and mid-rise space and Class B assets. Current vacancy is just below 10 percent overall.

“Located on a city block near the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, the largest tenant is advertising agency Mullen Communications which leases 105,000 square feet. About 25,000 square feet is available on the seventh floor, and nearly 12,000 square feet of retail space is available at Broad and Milk streets,” reports Thomas Grillo, real estate editor at the Boston Business Journal.

Follow the link to read the full BBJ coverage of the sale of 40 Broad St.

Related Real Estate Listings
Boston Financial District Office Space for Lease

0 Boston Buildings Rank High for Energy Conservation

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Wil Catlin

Photo Credit: Boston Business Journal

The Commonwealth ranks high among its peers nationally for energy conservation.

According to a Boston Business Journal report, two Bay State buildings, the JFK Building in Boston, and the J.C. Penney in Peabody, stood above its competition in terms of energy conservation.

The BBJ details the criteria, “competitors tracked their building’s monthly energy consumption using EPA’s online energy tracking tool. Energy use reductions for each top finisher were verified. Energy use in commercial buildings accounts for nearly 20 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions at a cost of more than $100 billion per year.”

To read more about the JFK Building and the J.C. Penney that earned the green accolades, jump over to the BBJ online.