Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Post

𝐀𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐒𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞! Despite the ongoing challenges in the office sector, downtown Seattle is showing promising signs of recovery. Over the past two months, there's been a significant increase in workers returning to the office, with weekday presence rising from 55% of pre-pandemic levels in May to 62% by July, according to the Downtown Seattle Association. 📈 This resurgence in office attendance could be a catalyst for broader economic activity, including increased demand for nearby housing options as more workers choose to live closer to where they work. 🏢 With city/county employee mandates requiring in-office work starting in November, and Amazon tightening its own in-office policies, we could see even more growth in downtown's vibrancy. While office space demand remains subdued, this uptick in worker presence is a step in the right direction. As downtown becomes more active, opportunities for residential development and investment may rise, paving the way for a stronger, more dynamic urban core. Read more about Seattle's resurgence in this insightful CoStar Group article: https://lnkd.in/geFhwRxY #seattleapartments #washingtonrealestate #pugetsoundrealestate #pnwrealestate #seattlerealestate #pugetsoundmultifamily #seattlemultifamily #pnwmultifamily

Two separate articles today highlight the mixed approaches to office returns on opposite sides of the Atlantic. The BBC reports about the dire commercial property market in New York - and elsewhere in the USA - due to swathes of empty office buildings. There has been a US$660bn drop in the value of commerical property and a 40-year low in commerical leases shows just how tough things are. In Manhattan, just 12% of office workers are showing up five days a week. There are reports of companies pouring huge sums into renovation and remodeling, plus offers of free food to entice workers back. https://lnkd.in/geU8CnKY On the other side of The Pond though, Boots (UK's largest high street chemist) has ordered all staff to return five days a week from September. After running a three-day model since the pandemic, MD Seb James cites "informal chats, quick catch-ups, and ability to meet in person as groups" as some of the benefits of a full-time return. The company has also spent up large on provision of better working spaces, including quiet work areas. https://lnkd.in/gyT_ghVR The obvious link between the two stories is the recognitioin from bosses that offices need to be upgraded - substantially in some cases - in order to get worker buy-in to a full-time in-person work week. So, magnet or mandate? Force workers back or entice them? Research suggests the mandate route could cause issues - as our recent article mentions. https://lnkd.in/dNDX6h7B The ability to choose comes with productivity and wellbeing gains for employees as well as a better connection to company culture. In terms of attracting and retaining staff, provision of a well-designed workplace and allowing people to make their own decisions around in-person attendance, the benefits seem to be clear. #OfficeCulture #MagnetOrMandate #FiveDaysAWeek #RemoteWorking #WorkspaceDesign

In the current environment, office assets are doing it tough. While office occupancy historically has seen cyclical changes depending on employment, economic prosperity, and supply changes, never has it had to withstand a pandemic and a fundamental shift in behaviours towards working. Hear more on the secondary office conundrum here: https://lnkd.in/gfCxbJaQ #RayWhiteValuations #CommercialValuations #Research

An article in The Times reports that workers outside London who have shorter commutes on public transport are returning to their offices more frequently. IWG Founder and CEO Mark Dixon summarised this pattern last year when he said "the enemy is commuting" rather than the office itself, with hybrid working enabling more and more people to work in the heart of their local communities. #IWG #CEO #MarkDixon #hybridwork #flexspace #workfromanywhere

Across all the Australian city CBDs, office occupancy dropped to an average of 70.4% of pre-COVID levels in the last quarter of 2023. The lowest occupancy levels are being seen in #Melbourne and #Perth was the only capital to record an increase. Multiple employee surveys including one by #Linkedin have found that most office workers were spending two or three days a week in the office in #Sydney. Clearly, this is an important factor in determining the potential demand impacts on residential housing in all of these capital city markets, and also the longer-term impacts on the major lifestyle markets. #australianproperty #australianeconomy #aussieloanguru #wiseguru

The more things change, the more they stay the same. It’s our assertion that an office dweller from 25 years ago would not be lost in a modern office. Read about this and more observations on our latest blog. #coworking #privateoffices #sharedoffices #BentonvilleAR #BellaVistaAR #coffeeincluded https://lnkd.in/gfzX_RBb

This is #DFW's introduction to Avison Young | US's new #BusynessIndex. Check out our review that looks in detail at how our office submarket's are performing. One standout finding is how more active our urban core and close-in #office submarkets are compared to our strong employment centers in the more distant suburbs. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out or post a question in the comments.

Here is why companies are sending employees back to the office: This 60 MINUTES video shares great insight on what is happening to office buildings in New York City. Empty office buildings contribute to a factor called the ‘Urban Doom Loop’ where empty office buildings are causing decreased property values and potential mortgage defaults which leads to decreased property tax assessments. This leads to a lower tax revenue for cities and in turn causes lower budgets for schools, police, government, city/urban planning etc. Then those employees working from home experience a lesser quality of life and chose to leave the city for cheaper housing and a better quality of life. Which leads to retail businesses closing. New York City has lost close to 1M people since 2020. Thoughts? https://lnkd.in/dNwA2BAh

Regardless of your position on the #WorkFromOffice vs #WorkFromHome debate, the commercial office market statistics show the results. This well-written article by Konrad Putzier at The Wall Street Journal succinctly sums it up: More offices will be emptier for longer because this is not the result of an economic shift, but rather a lifestyle shift. #workplacestrategy https://lnkd.in/eAg_CyBM

According to this latest research, UK offices are rarely achieving much more than a 30% average daily occupancy rate. That is roughly half what it was pre-Covid and probably explains why so many businesses have been cutting back their office space. Unsurprisingly, occupancy rates are consistently higher on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays with Fridays remaining the least popular commuter day. Interestingly, London is leading the way with occupancy rates in some prime buildings now achieving pre-Covid levels of 70%-80% albeit, just on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays! So what are your office habits and would you work for an employer that insisted on 100% office attendance Monday to Friday?