Houston Office Leases Getting Done, Kind Of

More office leases have been getting signed in the Houston area so far in 2016 than in the same time period a year ago, according to Elliott Hirshfeld with CBRE. But, the deals are significantly smaller.

Hirshfeld, who shared his information at CBRE’s quarterly press luncheon on July 19, said 210 lease deals have taken place so far this year, versus the 170 deals from last year. But the deal size is down by close to 40%.

Tenants want more concessions and lower rent rates from landlords and sub-landlords. But sub-landlords don’t want to spend money to break up the sublease space, which accounts for approximately 3 million out of Houston’s 10 million square feet of available space.

“We’re in the doldrums,” Hirshfeld said. “We’re not sinking – we’re just not going anywhere.”