WASHINGTON, DC—A report by the DowntownDC Business Improvement District details just how strong the downtown district's economy was in 2013, but also pointed out some prevailing trends that could spell trouble for the district in the years ahead.
The district's annual report warns that cutbacks in federal employment, the declining amount of square feet needed per employee, and regional competition will all contribute to a reduction in office space demand by 7 million square feet to 14 million square feet in the coming years. Such a reduction could spike the current 14.4% private market office vacancy rate to as high as 25%, according to the Washington Business Journal.
“It's strong with the exception of a lot of uncertainty in the commercial office market,” says BID Executive Director Richard Bradley.
Some record achievements recorded in 2013 included: employment reaching 745,000 wage and salary jobs; hotels posting record operating performance and room revenue totals; and the average sales price of Class A D.C. office buildings reaching a high water mark of $712 per square foot. The average sales price for all classes of buildings was $533 per square foot, another record for the district. See story in the Washington Business Journal.
Continue Reading for Free
Register and gain access to:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
John Jordan
John Jordan is a veteran journalist with 36 years of print and digital media experience.
