Is Covid Also Killing The Traditional Corporate Office?

Covid is making many offices obsolete, says WSJ, which means “more companies are making remote work permanent, forcing developers to convert old office buildings into warehouses, apartments & other uses."

The premise certainly rings true in many big cities where reports of reduced traffic woes have been reported; even a 10% decrease in cars on the road thanks to remote working can make a noticeable difference. But, the WSJ suggests, the “conversion” trend may only be starting as it cites AllState Insurance recently selling its once busy & sprawling suburban campus to a redeveloper to be demolished & turned into warehousing & logistics facilities. It warned: “The American office building, where millions of white-collar employees have headed to work for more than a century, is in a state of reckoning.”

Oh, sure, new skyscrapers in big city downtowns continue to fill up despite rising rents. “But, thousands of older buildings across the U.S. face an uncertain future” as more companies “elect to make remote work or a hybrid model a permanent part of their corporate culture” … and cash in on the “cost savings by cutting real estate costs”.

Davd Soul