A rendering of Mack-Cali Realty Corp.’s soon-to-be-upgraded Harborside complex in Jersey City — Courtesy: Mack-Cali
By Joshua Burd
Three major tenants have renewed and expanded within Mack-Cali Realty Corp.’s waterfront portfolio, leasing a combined 323,000 square feet in two Jersey City office buildings.
The real estate investment trust on Wednesday announced the completion of the recent leases ahead of a scheduled third-quarter earnings call. The deals include a previously reported lease with E-Trade Financial Corp., which signed for 132,000 square feet at Harborside Plaza 2 as part of a renewal and 26,000-square-foot expansion.
Another tenant at Harborside 2, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., renewed and expanded by 36,000 square feet for a total of 111,000 square feet. Meantime, financial services company First Data renewed and expanded by 32,000 square feet at 101 Hudson St., where now occupies 80,000 square feet.
Mack-Cali CEO Michael J. DeMarco touted the deals on Wednesday, noting that the waterfront accounted more than 46 percent of the REIT’s leasing activity for the quarter. Overall leasing volume topped 830,000 square feet during Q3.
“We had an excellent quarter on all fronts but especially waterfront leasing,” DeMarco said, later adding: “The substantial capital improvements that have been completed are getting tenants to our projects and we are pleased to see conversion coming from the consistent rise in traffic that has been building throughout the year.”
Mack-Cali, which reported a loss of $0.05 per diluted share in the quarter, is slated to hold its earnings call on Thursday morning. As part of its update this week, the REIT said its core office portfolio was 84.2 percent leased through the end of September.
The company also sold three office buildings during Q3, including a 95,000-square-foot complex at 600 Horizon Drive in Hamilton that garnered $15.8 million.
Mack-Cali, through its Roseland Residential Trust subsidiary, boasts a multifamily portfolio that was 96.4 percent leased through Q3. The company said it has delivered 1,212 apartments in 2018 and continued to see strong demand at recently opened properties.
Its construction pipeline also includes nearly 1,800 units and hotel rooms, the REIT said.
“In our residential portfolio, the leasing pace is brisk, with strong interest represented by quarter end occupancy of 96 percent,” DeMarco said. “The fourth quarter is looking excellent. We expect 2018 to be a solid year.”
