NEW YORK (Reuters) – Leasing of commercial office space in New York City’s Manhattan borough dropped 46.4% in April from the previous month, as some businesses folded due to the coronavirus pandemic while other companies went to long-term remote work.
About 0.98 million square feet (91,050 square meters) were leased in April, down from 1.8 million square feet (167,230 square meters) in March, data from real estate brokerage Colliers showed on Monday. April’s office leasing was also 37.8% lower from a year earlier, which was at 1.34 million square feet (124,490 square meters).
April’s largest lease transaction was the 109,000 square feet (10,126 square meters) leased by software company Schrödinger’s at 1540 Broadway, while March’s biggest lease volume was the 720,000 square feet lease renewal and expansion by private equity firm Blackstone Group Inc at 345 Park Avenue.
The availability rate increased for the 11th consecutive month to a record high of 16.5% in April, data showed.
Availability in Manhattan’s downtown jumped to a record 17.4%, with availability in all three markets: midtown, Midtown South and downtown – at an all-time peak.
(Reporting by Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
