by With the fall-out of the sub-prime loans, there is continuing good news in the commercial markets.
London has surpassed Hong Kong to hold the position of having the world’s highest office rents. According to the NAI Global Market Report, the Mayfair submarket in London’s West End reached $265.31 per square foot. That was an increase of $40 per square foot over the prior 12 months. Hong Kong was close behind at $263.20 per square foot.
New York’s midtown market was up to $225 per square foot. That makes Boston’s $90 per square foot look very affordable. Boston came in third in the United States.
The New York market appears to still be strong. According to Cushman and Wakefield’s year end report, 22.2 million square feet of office space was available at the end of 2007, which is down form the 26 million available at the end of 2006. Manhattan’s overall vacancy rate improved for the year, finishing at 5.7%, down from 6.7% at the end of 2006.
