The 495/Mass Pike market is located between Boston and Worcester and surrounds the intersection of the Mass Pike (I-90) and Route 495, Boston’s outer beltway. 495/Mass Pike towns include Bolton, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Hudson, Marlborough, Natick, Northborough, Shrewsbury, Southborough, Sudbury, and Westborough. The submarket’s location offers easy access to Route 128 and Boston, as well as offering the market’s large employers access to the faster growing more affordable communities in along 495 and in Worcester County for employees. The submarket has a very diverse tenant base including Staples, Boston Scientific, Genzyme, Bose, TJX, and EMC, and Framingham and Natick offer one of the most prominent retail corridors in Greater Boston.
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During the first six months of the year, vacancy at 14.9 percent and availability at 22.0 percent remained relatively unchanged. Overall market conditions were healthy and vacancy remains just above the six-year low of 13 percent. Net absorption was slightly negative at (2,262) square feet year-to-date, but in the second quarter 78,717 square feet of positive absorption, primarily due to Netezza’s occupancy of 58,693 square feet of space at 26 Forest Street in Marlborough, was encouraging. The average asking rent at $21.28 per square foot gross, edged up slightly from $21.04 per square foot gross at the beginning of the year. Class A assets in Westborough are maintaining asking lease rates at upward of $25 per square foot gross.
Rent appreciation has been most significant in the 5.1 millionsquare- foot Framingham and Natick submarket, due to limited leasing opportunities for large blocks of Class A space. The availability and vacancy rates are much lower here than the overall market and at 13.0 percent and 8.3 percent respectively, they continue to decline slowly. Asking rents for available space in premier Class A buildings in this segment have been firm during the first half of the year and ranged from $28 to $30 per square foot gross. With no new development in the pipeline landlords should continue to have the upper hand in lease negotiations.
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LEASE
Flextronics
200 Nickerson Rd, Marlborough
20,249 SF
Sublease
Namic/VA
26 Forest Street, Marlborough 30,000 SF
Relocation
Boston Power
2200 West Park Drive, Westborough
20,000 SF
Renewal with Expansion
SALE
Maric Framingham Portfolio, Framingham
May 2008
$81,900,000 ($205/SF) 399,686 SF
33 Locke Dr, Marlborough
May 2008
$7,150,000 ($118/SF)
60,477 SF
260 Cochituate Rd, Framingham
March 2008
$7,250,000 ($279/SF)
26,000 SF
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