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Subleases Rise as Boston Office Tenants Hesitate on Long-Term Decisions

Occupiers in the Boston Downtown, suburban and Cambridge office markets are hesitant to make long-term decisions about their real estate requirements, according to CBRE. Additionally, new subleases hitting the market affected availabilities and vacancies. 

Second-quarter leasing volume in Downtown Boston was 771,000 square feet, down from the five-year quarterly average. Overall leasing activity in Boston’s suburban market finished at 442,593 square feet with new deals driving activity. Cambridge remained relatively unchanged from Q1, as tech firms reassess how the return to office will materialize for their employees looking for work-life balance.

“While Boston’s Downtown continues to perform better than most other major cities in the country, economic uncertainty and a swelling of subleases are of concern as both investors and occupiers try to navigate new market realities,” said Kevin Kennedy, SVP at CBRE.

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CBRE's Kennedy

About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 16-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 7-10 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).