Preferred Office Locations: Comparing Location Preferences and Performance of Office Space in CBDs, Suburban Vibrant Centers and Suburban Areas

By: Emil Malizia

Release Date: November 2014

Where do today’s office tenants want to be located? This comprehensive study, which combines expert opinion and accurate property-level data, provides reliable information about emerging location preferences across major U.S. office markets and the comparative performance of office space in CBDs, suburban vibrant centers — defined as amenity-rich, mixed-use, “live, work, play” locations — and typical single-use suburban areas.

Overall, office tenants show no strong preference for either downtown or suburban locations. Yet the study reveals a clear preference for suburban vibrant centers over typical single-use suburban office environments, and demonstrates that office properties in suburban vibrant centers are outperforming those in typical single-use suburban office areas on almost all metrics.

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Full Report

Executive Summary (1-7)

Full Report without Appendixes (8-44)

Appendix A: Research on Location Preferences

Appendix B: Survey Questionnaire

Appendix C: Selected CoStar Market Areas

Appendix D: Research Methods for the Performance Analysis

Appendix E: Central Business District and Suburban Area Definitions

Appendix F: Second- and Third-Tier Office Market Comparisons

Appendix G: Suburban Vibrant Centers and Their Comparables