Figma Renews Lease for 98K sf at SF Headquarters

After its failed merger with Adobe, Figma has renewed the lease for its 97,600-square-foot headquarters in San Francisco’s Financial District.

The design collaboration startup re-upped its lease at the landmark Phelan Building at 760 Market Street, the San Francisco Business Times reported.

Financial terms of the deal with owner Phelan Building LLC were not disclosed. But Compstak shows Figma’s renewal stretches until at least 2028.

Figma, founded in 2021, was launched in the building when it subleased offices from Credit Karma, the Business Journal reported. Unidentified sources said that deal would turn into a direct lease.

It appears that’s just happened, four four months after San Jose-based Adobe’s proposed $20 billion acquisition of Figma fell apart in the face of resistance from regulators. Figma, which received a $1 billion break-up fee from Adobe, is now charting its next move.

It’s not clear if Adobe’s acquisition of Figma, had it been successful, would have seen the firm remain at the Flatiron-like, 10-story building built in 1908. Figma, which occupies the equivalent of four floors, appears to be its largest tenant.

Figma’s renewal is a big win for Phelan Building, an affiliate of Buffalo-based businessman Patrick Hotung that bought the 298,000-square-foot office and retail building in 2016 for $374 million, or $1,255 per square foot.

At the time, it was fully leased by such tech tenants as online publishing platform Medium, cloud computing firm Appirio and telecommunications app Voxer.

But in recent months, some of the building’s most prominent occupants have either shed offices or talked about moving out.

Afterpay, a Block-owned digital payments platform that in 2021 moved its North American headquarters to 50,300 square feet at 760 Market, last month listed the offices for sublease, according to CoStar.

The building’s vacancy rate was not available. But Figma’s recommitment to its headquarters is likely a boost for the property’s viability. Hotung said in a statement the renewal “reflects a broader trend of tech companies solidifying their presence in San Francisco.”

— Dana Bartholomew