Here is a roundup of the latest leases, sales and other transactions in the Northeast middle markets.

This week by the numbers

As industrial development is booming nationally thanks to the rise of e-commerce, Yardi Matrix looked at the top 50 cities which have substantially contributed to the addition of much-needed industrial space across the U.S. in the past decade. Among the highlights for New Jersey over the past decade:

• New Jersey is the top East Coast market for industrial development and 5th market nationwide, with a total of 54.9 million square feet delivered in 137 buildings since 2007;
• South Brunswick boasts 3.9 million square feet delivered in 9 buildings, the 2013-built 101 Middlesex Center Blvd having been the largest project completion in the last 10 years; two new developments are expected to hit the market this year in South Brunswick, Bridge Development Partners' Bridge Point Turnpike 8A Broadway Road and Clarion Partners' Park 130 – Building 3; Robbinsville and Easton also made the cut with a total of 5.7 million square feet delivered, the 2013-built Matrix Business Park at 7A – 50 New Canton Way (1M sq. ft.) and the 33 Logistics Park 1610 (1.1M sq. ft.) completed in 2016 were the biggest projects to come online in the area since 2007;
• In the Lehigh Valley, Bethlehem added the largest amount of industrial space, 7.9 million square feet in 16 buildings, ranking 17th on the Yardi list; the LEED-proposed Majestic Bethlehem Center – Building 3 is expected to add another million to Bethlehem's inventory.

The continued lack of availability of adequate industrial space, and increasing demand drives landlord optimism to achieve higher standard market rents, according to Douglas Ressler of Yardi.com. Aggressive pricing strategies forced average asking rates to $7.09 per square foot, an increase of 11.6 percent year over year. However, in some submarkets, the rental rate growth is even more acute. For example, in the Meadowlands where class A and B asking rates have reached low-to-mid double-digit figures, asking rental rates increased 16.6 percent year-over-year. As a result of the tight market, renewal activity is on the rise. Q2 2017 witnessed a 55.8% increase in renewals quarter-over-quarter. Tenants are staying in place because there is nowhere else to go, and landlords are reaping the benefits of these market dynamics.