Buildings’ history shows office market volatility

Crain’s New York Business looks at Manhattan office buildings that illustrate how the office market has shifted over the years since the Great Depression. These buildings include 1540 Broadway, whose 22-year lifespan has shown how hard real estate is to value, and 30 Rockefeller Plaza, built during the Depression. Manhattan office rents saw their biggest quarterly drop in 25 years during the first quarter of 2009, according to Cushman & Wakefield. Real estate experts have begun looking to history as they try to figure out how much further office rents and prices could fall before rebounding.