177 Broad St., Stamford/Image courtesy of RFR
With a significant downturn in leasing activity during the second quarter, Fairfield County’s availability rate for office space rose to nearly 28 percent.
CBRE said quarterly leasing activity decreased 43 percent from the same period in 2021, although average asking rents rose 2 percent from the previous quarter to $35.17 per square foot.
The 313,000 square feet of office leases inked during the quarter represent a 36-percent decrease from the county’s five-year average.
Interest rate hikes, inflationary pressures and fears of a recession are contributing to economic uncertainty, CBRE said. Availability rates range from 5.8 percent in the Greenwich central business district to 32.4 percent in the Stamford north central business district.
Stamford’s central business district represented the most active local submarket, with 119,000 square feet of leasing executed during the quarter, including Mirador LLC’s relocation to 20,000 square feet at 850 Canal St.
Subway Restaurants’ 87,000-square-foot relocation from Milford to 87,000 square feet at 1 Corporate Drive in Shelton highlighted activity in the Fairfield County East submarket, where the vacancy and availability rates both sit at 25.3 percent.
Four of the county’s five largest transactions were renewals, CBRE reported, including Indeed’s 150,273-square-foot short-term renewal at 177 Broad St. in Stamford. The firm also renewed 48,058 square feet at 17 Elm St.
