Manhattan office building average visitation rate reaches 70% of pre-pandemic levels

Manhattan, NY The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) released an analysis of October 2023 Placer.ai location data in 350 Manhattan office buildings. This report continues REBNY’s efforts to provide policymakers, financial markets and REBNY members as much data as possible on the state of New York City’s office market, which is of critical importance for the city’s tax revenues and broader economy.  

According to the report, Manhattan office buildings in October had an average visitation rate of 70% of pre-pandemic levels. This is four basis points greater than the rate seen in September and the highest level of building visitations since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. ? 

The report shows that higher class buildings are continuing to outperform others when it comes to building visitations, offering data to confirm commentary from wide range of analysts and stakeholders regarding a flight to quality in the office sector. Class A+ properties had an average visitation rate of 74% for October. Class A/A- and B/C properties closed some of the gap from A+ buildings, though, both had a rate of 70% and up from September’s findings in each category.? 

When looking at location, average visitation rates in Midtown South reached 76% and Midtown 71%. Downtown continues to lag, with visitations topping out at 60% in October, but still up two basis points from the previous month.  

“The uptick in October is a promising sign for New York City’s office market, particularly as some markets around the country have struggled to see much momentum in return to office” said Keith DeCoster, director of market data and policy at the Real Estate Board of New York. “While the city’s best-in-class buildings continue to capture the highest rates, gains in B/C buildings during the last several reporting periods suggests that businesses occupying a broad cross-section of the market are getting more employees back in the office - at least several days during the week.”