Chicago Commercial Real Estate – In the News

Published April 11, 2014

Tom’s Recommended Reading for the Week

It looks like Chicago has finally decided that it’s time for spring and great weather! Check out the top news in the Chicago Commercial Real Estate Industry before heading into the weekend and happy Friday!

  1. Office Market Continues to Gain Momentum – First quarter office sector studies show that in most of the nation’s office markets, rather than just in the top cities, landlords are gaining the upper hand.About 70 percent of U.S. office markets reported occupancy gains during the first quarter, according to commercial real estate services firm Cassidy Turley. The markets absorbed 12 million sq. ft. collectively from January through March 2014, up 63 percent from the first quarter of 2013… NREI 
  2. How workplace design looks to Groupon, Gogo and Herman Miller – Collaboration areas, whiteboard walls and spaces for private conversation drive workplace design at Groupon and Gogo, company officials said at a panel discussion Thursday.Even amid fast growth, Chicago-based Groupon stuck to workbench-style seating to foster collaboration. Gogo, an inflight Internet provider that is about to move to River West from Itasca, said its new space will be designed around employee needs… Chicago Tribune
  3. Small leases, big office vacancy in suburbs – After opening 2014 with just one lease larger than 50,000 square feet, landlords in suburban Chicago are back to where they were a year earlier.Lacking large new deals, overall suburban vacancy ticked up a notch during the first quarter of the year to 24.4 percent, the same as it was a year earlier, according to Chicago-based Jones Lang LaSalle Inc… Crain’s Chicago
  4. CareerBuilder consolidates LaSalle Street offices – CareerBuilder LLC is merging one of its Loop offices into a neighboring tower, boosting the size of its Chicago headquarters as parent Tribune Co. prepares to split its business lines.The Chicago-based job search website is adding 47,466 square feet to its headquarters at 200 N. LaSalle St... Crain’s Chicago
  5. Add $45 million Buffalo Grove deal to Florida investor’s office spree – A Florida buyer is set to pay about $45 million for a 12-story Buffalo Grove office tower, continuing an aggressive initial push into the Chicago area.Beacon Investment Properties LLC, which hadn’t invested in Chicago until late 2013, plans to buy Riverwalk II… Crain’s Chicago