Lower Manhattan office market rakes in leases, keeps rents steady in Q2

3 World Trade Center and 40 Wall St.
3 World Trade Center and 40 Wall St.

Lower Manhattan boasted above-average leasing for the ninth quarter in a row, according to a new report from the Alliance for Downtown New York, GlobeSt reported.

Leasing activity in the area totaled 2.46 million square feet year-to-date in 2013, a 22 percent jump year-over-year. Relocations and first-time renters — rather than renewals — drove the boost, GlobeSt said, citing the report.

Nyack College inked the largest deal of the quarter, picking up 166,000 square feet at Battery Place North. HAKS Engineering, which nabbed a 69,916-square-foot lease at 40 Wall Street, came in second.

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And while rents skyrocketed elsewhere in the city during the second quarter of 2013, Lower Manhattan remained relatively cost-effective, with asking rents $22 per square foot less than Midtown and $14 per square foot cheaper than Midtown South.

Taking rents held steady at 90 percent of asking rents, showing little indication of escalating.

Tenants in the technology, advertising, media and information sector have been drawn to the area as of late, with PR firm WeissComm Group moving into 199 Water Street from Midtown South and Group M snagging 500,000 square feet at 3 World Trade Center. [GlobeSt]Julie Strickland