Manhattan’s office sector is starting to see more demand and continues to recover from the pandemic lows.
The average visitation in June climbed to 77 percent of the 2019 levels, according to data from REBNY Research, which observed 350 buildings in the city. In the previous month, the figure was three percent lower. That 77 percent rate was also the highest on REBNY’s record since first posting Placer.ai data in February of last year.
“They have a combined square footage of 225 MSF, representing nearly 50% of Manhattan’s office stock,” the real state firm said in its report of the buildings.
Total device visits for June shot up nine percent year-over-year to 15.4 million. But that figure is down 23 percent from June 2019.
The strongest occupancy went to A+ buildings, averaging 91 percent visitation in June. That’s up 86 percent from May and from 83 percent a year ago. A- buildings were at 75 percent – but up from 69 percent from the previous month. Meanwhile, B and C buildings went downward, from 75 percent in May to 70 percent in June. In June 2023, visitations were 70 percent of 2019 levels.
Midtown saw the biggest demand for visitation in general in Manhattan, leaping to 81 percent from 76 percent in May. The rate in the area was only at 74 percent in June 2023. Midtown South lagged behind at 78 percent from June but rose both three percent from the previous month and a year ago. While Downtown saw a four percent decrease in June, it was up two percent year-over-year.
“Office building visitation has inched its closest yet to pre-Covid norms. This is a welcome result not only for office properties but the thousands of retail businesses and the transit system that depend on daytime commuters,” Keith DeCoster, vice president of research at REBNY said.
“Best-in-class properties and Midtown continued to separate from the rest of the market in June. Some B and C buildings, particularly those with prime access to transit, also registered improved visitation.”
While the demand might not be exactly back to pre-Covid, it looks like working onsite isn’t completely dead. But real estate developers will still need to account for concessions related to office space needed in the post-pandemic world.