PORTLAND—Portland's growing talent pool, competitive wages and relatively low cost of living continue to attract high tech firms to the city leading to a healthy increase in leasing activity in the commercial real estate market, according to JLL's latest High-Technology Office Outlook market report. Overall market dynamics in Portland, particularly strength in the area's high tech services job growth, have moved it up significantly in JLL's proprietary rankings, landing at 8th with a total weighted score of 53.8, up from 16th in 2013.
“We've seen strong growth among high tech firms in the last year with employment in the sector rising more than 3.5% and this has been one of the major factors leading to a 4.8% increase in office rents,” says Eric Haskins, an SVP at JLL.
The energy level is high as occupiers jockey for the best creative spaces and landlords improve their product to appeal to the need of the high-tech firms focused on talent, retention, and recruitment. As a result, class A rental rates have escalated rapidly and close in Eastside options have emerged as the economic option for entrepreneurial firms.
“Portland rose significantly in our JLL High-Technology ranking in 2014 and the market continues to strengthen in the eyes of tech entrepreneurs, start ups and even established companies because of its high quality of life, strong transit infrastructure, walkability, and the appeal of many of its downtown office locations,” says Patricia Raicht, director of research, Pacific Northwest, JLL. “High-tech is fuelling demand in our office market, and more than 30 percent of all office leasing activity so far in 2014 can be attributed to high-tech firms.”
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