HOUSTON – Los Angeles leads the nation in office building transactions in 2014, and Manhattan is No. 2, according to a mid-year report released by Transwestern, the Houston-based commercial real estate company.
The report covered office building sales, with a price of more than $2.5 million, for deals completed year-to-date before July 31.
Transwestern’s 2014 Deal Rankings:
- Los Angeles – 172 sales
- Manhattan – 107
- Boston – 95
- Dallas – 87
- Chicago – 73
- San Francisco – 71
- Miami – 68
- Northern New Jersey – 64
- Houston 63
- Orange County 32
On a per square foot basis, Manhattan was first with average sales price of $770 per square foot, followed by Washington DC at $548 psf, Transwestern reported. Surprisingly, Austin ranked No. 7 with average sales price of $269 psf.
The report was based on research from Real Capital Analytics.
In its “Briefing” report, Transwestern said office building sales in the second quarter of 2014, totaled $27.2 billion, a 25 percent over the second quarter of last year.
The U.S. economy is demonstrating signs of increasing economic activity, while both Europe and Asia are showing signs of reaching stall speed, according to the Briefing report. If job growth continues to stay strong, consumption and retail sales are expected to see some lift. The Federal Reserve’s withdrawal of stimulus and ultimate rate increases will cause some drag to the economy, but growth should improve at a rate of 3.0 percent.
The major commercial real estate property types saw year-over-year increases in sales in the second quarter, according to the Real Capital Analytics 2014 Mid-Year Review, cited by Transwestern. Multifamily had a 39 percent increase year-over-year with $26 billion in sales. Office assets saw $27.2 billion in sales, a 25 percent year-over-year increase. Industrial sales totaled $11 billion, marking a 13 percent year-over-year increase. Retail properties posted slightly ahead of last year with $14.4 billion in sales.