He says that the recent demise of local e-commerce companies, coupled with the downsizing of several large corporate headquarters "have placed a great deal of new sublease space into the marketplace. This space will have a detrimental effect on the overall effectuated rental rates of our existing owners' direct space, as they will be forced to compete more aggressively with these units as the year continues. "
Benson notes that, historically, the Westchester and Fairfield markets have relied heavily on the backfilling of existing space via corporate relocations from New York City.
"At present, we maintain 19 separate full buildings or blocks of space over 100,000 sf, 35 direct and sublease units between 50,000 sf and100,000 sf and the most influential sector, the 25,000-sf plus space block in over 70 separate sublease and direct-lease units that could accommodate the requirement," he says. "The 25,000-sf sector is the most important incubator for future growth within our region."
The broker says that, "Our most influential allies are the New York City brokerage entities who control many of the potential relocation candidates. With New York City occupancy levels and rents at one of their all-time highs and companies now focused on reducing their operational costs, it is imperative that there is a comprehensive understanding of the dramatic cost savings for a Westchester or Fairfield headquarters relocation."
Benson argues that an average 100,000 sf NYC suburban relocation prospect who moves to a class A building in either Stamford or White Plains "should save a minimum of over $4 million a year in just rent and space efficiency."
He maintains that although both Westchester and Fairfield Counties are currently enjoying a modest amount of internal corporate movement and growth as well as stable property ownership, "without the aforementioned relocation influx, our markets may not be able to maintain their equilibrium."
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John Jordan
John Jordan is a veteran journalist with 36 years of print and digital media experience.
