NJ TRANSIT HUB PERSPECTIVE | SUMMER 2018
Morristown
Morristown is located approximately 30 miles west of NYC and
is the county seat for Morris County. It has also been called
“the military capital of the American Revolution” because of its
strategic role in the war for independence from Great Britain.
Passenger rail service is accessible via the Morristown Station
and Convent Station on New Jersey Transit’s Morris & Essex
Morristown line. Persistent demand for residential housing
in the downtown area has fostered the redevelopment of the
Speedwell Avenue area. Mill Creek Residential recently completed
construction on a 185-unit luxury complex called Modera 55,
which is located at Prospect and Early streets. In addition,
Woodmont Properties and Roseland Residential Trust have begun
leasing at The Metropolitan Lofts, a 59-unit apartment building
located at the former Epstein Department store site.
The Morristown average asking Class A rental rate approached
$29.80 per square foot at year-end 2017, compared to less
than $26.90 per square foot in 2016. Higher asking rents at 44
Whippany Road, which had recently undergone significant
renovations, were responsible for the uptick in the average
Class A rental rate. Competitive rental rates combined with a
growing labor pool generated by new residential developments
are expected to draw office tenants with space requirements.
Net new supply, net absorption and total vacancy
Net new supply
Most of the office buildings in the Morristown transit hub market
are located in proximity to the Morristown Station, with buildings
on Madison Avenue being near Convent Station. The Morristown
overall vacancy rate retreated 50 basis points from year-end 2016
to 15.6 percent. The lower vacancy rate could be traced to activity
in the Class A market, where the vacancy rate slipped from 21.4
percent in 2016 to 21.0 percent one year later. A leading factor
behind the lower Class A vacancy rate was the addition of 49-55
Market Street to the office inventory. Construction was completed
on the 45,000-square-foot building in mid-2017, which was fully
leased to the law firm of Fox Rothschild. Among the largest leases
signed in this submarket during the past year was Duff &
Phelps’ long-term renewal of 33,000 square feet at
Headquarters Plaza East.
Net absorption
total vacancy
300,000 30.0%
200,000 26.0%
100,000 22.0%
0 18.0%
-100,000 14.0%
-200,000
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
10.0%
Princeton
After falling to 16.5 percent at year-end 2016, diminished leasing
velocity combined with additional availabilities boosted the
Princeton overall vacancy rate to nearly 19.0 percent one year
later. Among the largest blocks of space impacting the Princeton
transit hub market in 2017 was 46,920 square feet marketed for
sublease at 202 Carnegie Center. inVentiv formerly utilized this
space prior to merging with INC Research. The largest transaction
completed during the past