Merritt Properties Sees Strong Commercial Leasing Activity for First Quarter 2016

Merritt Properties, a full-service commercial real estate firm in Maryland and Northern Virginia, ended the first quarter of 2016 with 41 new leases totaling 189,850 square feet, plus 72 renewal and expansion deals totaling 772,886 square feet. This translated to an overall absorption of 298,547 square feet.

 During the quarter, Merritt was at pace, or outpaced, the market in almost every submarket in which they have a presence, with the healthiest absorption occurring among office product in the Columbia North and South submarkets, flex and industrial product in the Loudoun County portfolio and Baltimore County East industrial submarket.

This strong activity brought Merritt to a 92% overall occupancy rate, with 22 buildings achieving 100% occupancy. This represents the company’s highest occupancy rate in the past 5 years, and is about 3% higher than the market average.

Merritt Properties’ activity dealt with all sectors of business, from food & beverage production to technology companies to manufacturing and warehousing. However, light industrial use accounted for the majority of transactions, with 129,781 square feet in new leases and 321,759 square feet of renewals and expansions.

Merritt closed several large leases within this quarter including:

• 125,400 SF renewal with Vytex Corporation, a full-service window and door manufacturer
• 93,285 SF renewal/expansion with Black & Decker, Inc., a manufacturer of power-tools, hardware, and other home improvement accessories
• 24,000 SF new lease with Fidelity Engineering, Inc., a HVAC technician company
• 21,600 SF renewal/expansion with East Coast Dyes, Inc., who produces and sells lacrosse mesh, stringing, and related sports apparel
• 12,500 SF new lease with Charm City Hospitality, LLC, an event management and concession company
• 12,360 SF new lease with Humanim, Inc., a non-profit organization focused on workforce development for individuals with disabilities

MCS, Merritt’s construction division, is completing all of the necessary renovations and interior build-outs for these projects.

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About Merritt Properties

Established in 1967, Merritt Properties is the largest privately held commercial real estate firm in Maryland, with nearly 16 million square feet of Class A office, flex, warehouse, industrial, retail and build-to-suit in the Baltimore/Washington area. They design, build, lease and manage their properties for the long term with a commitment to providing the highest quality service to all of their customers.

Merritt Media Contact

Melissa Teague

410.298.2600

[email protected]