District of Columbia

Workbox to Open 29,000 SF Coworking Space in DC’s Dupont Circle District

by John Nelson December 17, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Workbox plans to open a new 29,000-square-foot coworking space at an office building located at 1333 New Hampshire Ave. NW in Washington, D.C.’s Dupont Circle district. The new space is set to open in February and will represent the company’s first location in the Mid-Atlantic and its 12th nationwide. Workbox also recently announced a coworking location in Pittsburgh that is set to open next month. Workbox – Dupont Circle will feature an entire floor of workspaces, lounges, conference rooms and amenity spaces. Additionally, the space will offer offices and suites for teams ranging in size from one to 40 individuals, all of which have flexible monthly rental agreements.

December 17, 2024

District of Columbia Southeast

US Economy Posts Strong Rebound in November by Adding 227,000 Jobs

by John Nelson December 6, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs in November, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The figure is a strong rebound from October when the economy added 36,000 jobs, which is an upward revision by the BLS from its previous report of 12,000 jobs for the month. CNBC and other media outlets cite impacts from Hurricane Milton and the Boeing strike as reasons why the October total fell so far short of expectations. In addition to the October revision, the BLS revised September’s job total upward to 255,000, which brings net employment for the two months 56,000 jobs higher than previously reported. The November total also surpassed Dow Jones economists’ expectations of 214,000 jobs for the month, according to CNBC. The most actively expanding employment sectors in November included healthcare, which added 54,000 jobs, and leisure and hospitality, which added 53,000 jobs. The healthcare total is in line with the sector’s 59,000 average over the prior 12 months, but the leisure and hospitality figure more than doubled its 12-month average of 21,000 jobs, according to the BLS. Other sectors that added jobs in November include government (+33,000), transportation equipment manufacturing (+32,000) and social assistance (+19,000). …

December 6, 2024

District of Columbia Leasing Activity Office Southeast

Milbank Signs 65,000 SF Office Lease at 1101 New York Avenue in DC

by John Nelson November 22, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Milbank, an international law firm, has signed a 65,000-square-foot lease at 1101 New York Avenue, a 388,000-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C.’s East End. The office building is now 94 percent leased to firms including A&O Shearman, National Retail Federation, EY and Bloomberg. Dale Schlather, Malcolm Marshall and Alson Offutt of Cushman & Wakefield represented Milbank in the lease deal. Kyle Luby, Matt Pacinelli, John Klinke and Tim McCarty of Stream Realty Partners represented the landlord, a partnership between Oxford Properties Group and Norges Bank Investment Management. Jim Potocki of Oxford Properties was also part of the leasing team at 1101 New York Avenue, which has 28,000 square feet of availability.

November 22, 2024

Affordable Housing District of Columbia Loans Multifamily Southeast

FHFA Expands Multifamily Loan Purchase Caps for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac in 2025

by John Nelson November 19, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has increased the multifamily loan purchase caps for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for their 2025 production. The two government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) will each have caps of $73 billion, or $146 billion combined, which is a 4 percent increase from the 2024 caps of $70 billion apiece. Bob Broeksmit, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), says that the move to increase the cap is fitting due to recent moves by the Federal Reserve, which has twice reduced the federal funds rate in recent months. “The 4 percent increase in the multifamily loan purchase caps to $73 billion for each GSE is appropriate, given the slightly improved market conditions and lending activity that’s expected next year due to the slow decline in interest rates,” says Broeksmit. The FHFA will continue to exclude multifamily loans that finance workforce housing communities from the 2025 cap and require the GSEs to have at least 50 percent of their multifamily originations finance “mission-driven” affordable housing. The FHFA will continue to monitor the multifamily mortgage market and “maintains the ability to raise the caps further if necessary to support liquidity in the market.” If …

November 19, 2024

District of Columbia Industrial Loans Southeast

PRP Obtains $291M CMBS Loan for 4.5 MSF National Logistics Portfolio

by John Nelson November 15, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — PRP has obtained a $291 million CMBS loan for the refinancing of a national logistics portfolio totaling more than 4.5 million square feet. Eastdil Secured arranged the single-asset single-borrower (SASB) loan through JP Morgan. The portfolio spans five newly constructed buildings in the industrial markets of Houston; Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.; St. Louis, Ill.; and Birmingham, Ala. The properties were fully leased at the time of financing including to tenants including a global online retailer, a home improvement company and power tool manufacturer, according to Washington, D.C.-based PRP.

November 15, 2024

District of Columbia Features Office Southeast Southeast Feature Archive

DC in Denial on Post-COVID Office Property Valuations

by John Nelson November 14, 2024

Commercial property owners in the District of Columbia are crawling out of a post-pandemic fog and into a new, harsh reality where office building values have plummeted, but property tax assessments remain perplexingly high. Realization comes slowly Immediately following the pandemic, many office property owners adopted a wait-and-see attitude toward the volatility permeating the sector, clinging to hopes that the rising popularity of remote work and similar office worker practices would prove temporary. Once the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates to combat generational inflation in 2022, however, hopes for a “return to normal” vanished and a grim reality set in. Recent transactions involving office properties in the District clearly indicate that investors recognize the negative impact these market forces have exerted on office building valuations and are now pricing those changes into the amounts they are willing to bid for acquisitions. These recent sales show office building values have declined by more than 50 percent from pre-pandemic levels. The other shoe began to drop on office market pricing in early 2023 with a rise in distress transactions, in which the office owner sells or forfeits the property to resolve some form of trouble, typically financial. These turnovers in ownership …

November 14, 2024

District of Columbia Healthcare Hospitality Industrial Loans Multifamily Office Retail Southeast

MBA: Third-Quarter Commercial, Multifamily Borrowing Increased 59 Percent Year-Over-Year

by John Nelson November 8, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Commercial and multifamily mortgage loan originations increased 59 percent in the third quarter of 2024 compared to a year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations. The third-quarter volume also represents a 44 percent increase from the second quarter. There was a 510 percent year-over-year increase in the dollar volume of loans for healthcare properties, a 99 percent increase for hotel properties, 82 percent increase for retail properties, 57 percent increase for industrial properties and a 56 percent increase for multifamily properties. Office real estate originations decreased 3 percent from a year ago. Among investor types, the dollar volume of loans originated for commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) increased by 260 percent year-over-year. There was a 69 percent increase for depository (i.e. bank) loans, a 62 percent increase for investor-driven lender loans, 31 percent increase in loans for life insurance companies and a 28 percent increase in loans from government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs, namely Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac). Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s head of commercial real estate research, says that lower interest rates due in part to the Federal Reserve’s 50-basis-point decrease in September were “a key driver” for the uptick …

November 8, 2024

District of Columbia Southeast

US Economy Adds 12,000 Jobs in October, Far Below Expectations

by John Nelson November 4, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. economy added 12,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in October, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This figure falls drastically short of expectations as CNBC reports that the Dow Jones economists previously predicted an increase of 100,000 jobs for the month. In its report, the BLS noted that strike activity significantly impacted employment in the manufacturing sector, which saw the loss of 46,000 jobs. Of those jobs, 44,000 were within the transportation equipment manufacturing field, reflecting the impact of the Boeing strike. Temporary help services, a subsect of professional and business services, saw a decline of 49,000 jobs in October. Government employment and healthcare added 40,000 and 52,000 jobs, respectively, while construction employment increased by a less significant 8,000 jobs. Other major industries saw little to no change. The BLS report also cited the potential impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton on October’s employment situation, though it noted that “it is not possible to quantify the net effect on the over-the-month change in national employment, hours or earnings estimate.” The unemployment rate for October remained unchanged at 4.1 percent. According to Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the jobs …

November 4, 2024

Civic Development District of Columbia Industrial Maryland Southeast

Biden Administration Announces $3B Investment in Port Infrastructure

by John Nelson October 30, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Biden Administration has announced a $3 billion investment from the Inflation Reduction Act to improve port infrastructure and support an estimated 40,000 “good-paying and union jobs” at 55 ports across 27 states. According to The White House press, U.S. ports employ more than 100,000 union workers. The initiative, named The Clean Ports Program, is headlined by a $147 million investment for the Maryland Port Administration via grants and awards that will support 2,000 jobs, as well as fund the installation of zero-emission equipment, charging infrastructure and power improvements. Biden made the announcement yesterday at the Port of Baltimore, site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in March. The Clean Ports Program is expected to increase the demand for American manufactured electric cargo handling equipment and eliminate more than 3 million metric tons of carbon pollution over the first 10 years of implementation, which is equivalent to 391,220 homes’ energy use for one year. The program will fund new battery-electric and hydrogen-powered cargo handling equipment, drayage trucks, locomotives and vessels, as well as charging/fueling infrastructure and solar power installation.

October 30, 2024

Development District of Columbia Retail Southeast

National Geographic Society to Open 100,000 SF Museum of Exploration in DC

by John Nelson October 22, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Geographic Society has announced plans to open a 100,000-square-foot public attraction at its campus, which currently occupies a city block in downtown Washington, D.C. Dubbed the National Geographic Museum of Exploration, the attraction is scheduled to open in 2026. Upon completion, the venue will feature curated exhibitions, immersive and educational experiences, a 400-seat theater, restaurant and a retail store. The project team will include JLL, HITT Contracting and architect Hickok Cole. Design for the public attraction will feature a focus on accessibility, with instructional text in Braille, tactile and sensory maps, American Sign Language (ASL) interpretations of media, all-gender restrooms, wellness rooms and exhibition text in both English and Spanish. “The Museum of Exploration marks a historic chapter in the Society’s mission to advance exploration, science, education and storytelling,” says Jill Tiefenthaler, CEO of the National Geographic Society.

October 22, 2024

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