Office leasing among law firms has dropped due to COVID-19, but compared to other sectors its decline has not been that steep, according to a new report by Savills.
Leasing activity in the second quarter among law firms occupying offices of more than 20,000 square feet fell by 31% year-over-year. At the same time, leasing activity in the financial services sector declined 56%; the technology, advertising, media and information sector declined 51%; and co-working, one of the sectors most impacted by work-from-home measures, declined 82% year-over-year, the report stated.
The legal office leasing story, however, is very much a market-to-market one. Washington DC experienced a 47% rise in law firm leasing this year, with two major transactions closing: Mayer Brown renewed 173,000 square feet in the Central Business District while Wiley Rein consolidated from two adjoining buildings to 166,000 square feet at a new trophy location, also in the CBD.
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Rayna Katz
Rayna Katz is a seasoned business journalist whose extensive experience includes coverage of the lodging sector, travel and the culinary space. She was most recently content director for a business-to-business publisher, overseeing four publications. While at Meeting News, a travel trade publication, she received a Best Reporting award for a story on meeting cancellations in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
