EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ-Market analysts from Cushman & Wakefield are telling brokers that the research shows effective rents have hovered 5-7.8% below the $27-per-square-foot average asking price for the last two years. On the other hand, law firms are paying more than the average asking price.

Law firms paid just over $29 per-square-foot, the highest average rents for any Class A users, according to a new report from the East Rutherford-based real estate company.

“The majority of their leases were signed in higher priced areas such as Florham Park, Jersey City, and Newark,” notes the research report. Financial services firms also pay among the highest rents, C &W reports, since their offices are concentrated along the high-priced Hudson Waterfront.

Meanwhile, pharmaceutical and life science companies have been paying some of the lowest Class A rents in the state, averaging $21.94 per-square-foot. That is 12.5% lower than the New Jersey average.

“The lower taking rents are partially due to some of the leases occurring in Parsippany (one of the lower priced submarkets in Northern NJ at $23.20 per-square-foot),” says the report. The vacancy rate in Parsippany – just under 30% - is higher than the average in the state, which C & W pegs at 24%.

The average asking rental rate for the state has stayed in the $26.50-$27.00 per-square-foot range for the last two years, C & W reports. It used data from almost 300 recorded lease transactions in 2011 and 2012 to determine that the average taking rent for Class A space in the state was $25.07 per square foot.

Instant Insights /

C&W: Law Firms Pay Top Dollar for NJ Offices

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