By Steve Eisenshtadt, Friedman Real Estate 2020 was a challenging year for the office market. The pandemic caused record-high unemployment earlier in the year. Offices were forced to close, and employees quickly learned to work remotely since March. The office market in metropolitan Detroit ended 2020 with an 18.4 percent direct vacancy rate and 19.5 percent when adding in available sublease spaces, which increased to over 1 million square feet throughout the metropolitan area. In 2021, we expect to see a continued increase in direct and sublease availability, as the pandemic will keep offices closed for at least the first half of this year. Post-pandemic, many office users will integrate remote work practices, better social distancing and healthy building environments into their office plans. On a positive note, office tenants that have shelved their plans for relocations or expansions are now finally in the market forging ahead with some of their decisions. While their ultimate office space configuration may look different than what was planned pre-pandemic, it’s encouraging to see more tenants active in the market taking steps to figuring out their game plans. Let’s take a closer look at four major office submarkets in metropolitan Detroit. Downtown Detroit (CBD …
