NJ Office Leasing Lagged in Q1, But Industrials Still Booming, Says Colliers

John Obeid, left, Colliers International’s senior director of research for New Jersey, and David Simon, executive managing director and market leader for New Jersey

PARSIPPANY, NJ—After being robust for several quarters, office leasing “stalled” in the first quarter of 2016, but industrial properties continued to set new records – including rental rate increases that could reach twice the level of previous lease deals, according to research by Colliers International’s John Obeid and David Simon.

“Deals were getting done, but it was the lack of the large transactions that really pushed activity levels lower this quarter,” Obeid, Colliers senior director of research for New Jersey, tells GlobeSt.com exclusively, regarding office. Transactions in excess of 100,000 square feet last year were not replicated in the same quarter this year. “That turned absorption negative for the quarter, but that can be pointed toward to the densification trend. We’re seeing lots of clients relocate into more efficient class A space, and leaving behind some large blocks of class B.”