News
'BURBS RULE
April 19, 2012
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| Cushman & Wakefield Mid-Atlantic research director Paula Munger says Baltimore is opposite the rest of the country, with stronger office fundamentals in the suburbs than Downtown. That's even with 878k SF under construction, most of that beyond the city limits. (The largest CBD lease was 25k SF by the University of Maryland at 250 W Pratt St.) Granted, much of that owes to BRAC and US Cyber Command Center-related demand in Harford and Anne Arundel counties. Baltimore's suburban office vacancy is the third lowest in the US, she says, behind just Silicon Valley and San Fran. 80% of Greater Baltimore leases are in Class-A space. Baltimore leased 355k SF and absorbed 29k SF thanks to a diverse tenant base of government contractors, education and health, and, tellingly, a construction materials company (always a good sign). | |
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| Cushman & Wakefield senior economist Ken McCarthy says GDP will grow 2.5% this year, but most of that will come in the second half. Most activity will be in professional services like legal, accounting, and advertisting—and in DC, lobbying. The 18,000 jobs added in Baltimore last year bring the city within 10,000 of its '08 peak. We're about that much off our '08 weight. With the Olympics 100 days away, it might be time to get down to fighting form. |
