Slow New Kingston rentals, but no glut, realtors say
Published:Sunday | June 6, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Avia Collinder, Business Writer
Realtors say there is no surplus of office space in the uptown business district of New Kingston, but at least one investor who relies on the usually top-end rentals the area commands, says they have space that is slow in getting off their hands.
Gordon Tiwani of Tewani Limited has for some time now been trying to find takers for office space in four New Kingston buildings at Garelli Avenue and Haining Road.
Deborah Cumming, first vice-president of the Real Estate Association of Jamaica (RAJ), which recently launched a new national database and website for real-estate sales and rentals, is of the view that the individual experiences, such as Tewani's, do not represent a glut of commercial space in the area.
The availability of commercial space, she suggested, could have resulted from recent purchases. Tewani bought his properties some six years ago.
Existing rentals relatively stable
Cumming said existing rentals in New Kingston were relatively stable, with owners often negotiating rates and services to keep their clients.
Insurance and investment giant, Sagicor, through its property-services division, also has available space in the area, although the number and size of units were not disclosed. Sagicor Property Services manages over 1.6 million square feet of commercial space, making it one of the largest property-management companies in Jamaica.
However, Sagicor's Public Relations Manager, Ingrid Card, told Sunday Business that its New Kingston rentals were "steady".
There is at the same time, a slow trek of businesses, including small professional practices, from the Knutsford Boulevard corridor, the hub of the New Kingston district, to less expensive premises nearby.
The law firm, Buddington and Company Limited, which was previously located on the seventh floor of the Claro building on Knutsford Boulevard, recently moved offices up the road to Haughton Avenue, on the New Kingston outskirts.
Attorney Rowena Buddington said she moved to utilise
"We share a conference room and other facilities, and from that perspective, it is more economical," she explained.
General manager of real-estate firm Coldwell Banker, Gina Harrison, noted that because of the price profile of New Kingston commercial locations, only certain business sought to locate there.
Demand for commercial rentals in New Kingston, she said, came primarily from those businesses that need immediate access and proximity to the financial services located there. New Kingston offices are often no less than 800 square feet in size, with maintenance fees equal to or higher than the cost of rent, as it covers security, cleaning, parking and utilities. Renters in this area, she said, will be paying top dollar for the address and services.
Coldwell Banker, too, has on its hands, office spaces with parking locations for which it has been unable to find tenants.
The realtor is of the opinion that except for necessary expansion purposes, established businesses in the area might not readily move, considering the high cost of relocation and the attendant dislocations.
But some businesses, led by a policy move by the Government, have already signalled their intention to opt out of New Kingston to less expensive surroundings.
The Ministry of Investment, Industry and Commerce has acquired five floors of the Air Jamaica Building in downtown Kingston to relocate its offices from the Trafalgar Road premises of the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ). The PCJ is already advertising the lease of 6,100 square feet of office space there, although the ministry's move is still some six months away.
Sunday Business found 10 listings for the prime business area in newspaper classifieds, with a great variation in prices.
Ten current newspaper listings of available office space in New Kingston included 1,000 square feet at Braemar Avenue for $95,000 monthly; two floors of 3,000 square feet going for J$150,000 per floor; 700 square feet at J$85,000