"In spite of the market conditions, W&M was able to keep its portfolio 99 percent leased, with a large number of deals being negotiated on behalf of insurers and reinsurers, as well as firms in the financial, legal and accounting fields," says Jeffrey H. Newman, executive vice president of W&M Properties, the real estate management, marketing and acquisition arm of the Malkin family.

He explains that leasing remained relatively strong because the suburbs have become a viable alternative for New York City-based firms in the insurance and financial services sectors.

"The suburbs continue to attract these types of companies, which are looking for class-A space at locations from which they can easily access Manhattan," Newman says. "They also want space that can be leased at rental rates that compare quite favorably to similar space which can be obtained in Manhattan."

In W&M's nearly 2.1-million sf suburban office portfolio, company officials note that more than 121,000 sf of leases were negotiated in 2002 in 20 separate transactions. A total of nine deals were secured with new tenants and 11 with renewing and expanding firms. To accommodate these leases, five existing tenants renegotiated lease terms to relinquish space, W&M officials add.

"This successful year can be attributed, in large part, to our proactive relationships with tenants and to our tenants' own dynamism. Renewals and expansions are just as important to us as new leases," Newman notes. "W&M worked closely with tenants to meet changing space needs, enabling companies with excess space to avoid subleasing, and allowing W&M to retain control over the space."

Newman recalls one deal that required some reworking of existing tenancy was when W&M negotiated to take back 20,000 sf of a First Stamford Place tenant's excess space to accommodate a direct long-term relet lease deal with Arch Insurance Co.