In welcome news for Manhattan commercial real estate owners, the amount of sublet space on the market fell in February for the fourth month in a row, according to new data from Cassidy Turley. There was 15.2 million square feet of sublet space available — mostly from financial companies that are shrinking within their Class A office buildings — as of the end of the month, down 11 percent from the 17.1 million square feet on the market in October, the data show. Because the available inventory is seen as desirable, the firm is predicting further declines: JPMorgan Chase’s 150,000 square feet at 320 Park Avenue is nearing a deal, said Richard Bernstein, a vice chairman at Cassidy Turley, which is also representing the bank in the transaction. Sublet space tends to be cheaper than typical lease space, and has
played a large role in depressing office rents across the city. “The absorption of sublet space toward the end of the year will decline [as supply diminishes],” Bernstein said. [Crain’s]

Richard Bernstein, vice chairman at Colliers ABR

The vacancy rate for Midtown office buildings hit its highest level in
more than 15 years last month, fueled in part by several large blocks
of space that were placed on the market, a new report released
yesterday by commercial services firm Colliers ABR shows. But overall Manhattan data was mixed, showing some strength in the
Midtown South market where the vacancy rate declined modestly and
prices rose for Class A office space, the report indicates. The Midtown vacancy figure reached 14 percent, its highest level since
March 1994 when the rate reached 14.1 percent, the report covering
October says. Asking rents also fared poorly in the district, falling
1.2 percent to $58.16 per square foot. In a positive sign, the vacancy rate for all classes of buildings in
Midtown South fell .1 points to 14.1 percent and the average price for
Class A office space rose by $1.36 per square foot to $50.88 per foot.
But for all classes of buildings in the district, the average asking
rent fell by $0.48 per foot to $39.88 per square foot. more

Source: Colliers ABR

… [more]

From the October issue: As commercial buildings change hands and landlords seek to squeeze more
profit out of their properties, full-service brokerage firms are
sharpening their knives for what insiders believe will be a feeding
frenzy for new office leasing opportunities. A building’s leasing agent — a firm such as CB Richard Ellis or
Cushman & Wakefield — represents the landlord in leasing
negotiations, and such contracts often are packaged with overall
building management. Unlike the residential new development condo market, where buildings
change marketing agencies frequently, most agents at commercial
buildings remain in place at a building for years with very little
turnover, records show.

D.C. lobbying and law firm Patton Boggs has doubled its New York office
at the Stevens Tower, at 1185 Avenue of the Americas. The firm has
subleased 60,000 square feet for five years, with the possibility of
extending the lease. SL Green owns the 42-floor building. Colliers
ABR’s Richard Bernstein represented King & Spalding, who offered
the space, and Newmark Knight Frank’s Mark Weiss represented Patton
Boggs…. [more]