Commercial rents heading up in Cambridge

Rents for commercial space in Cambridge are expected to climb at least another 5-10 percent in 2007, Cresa Partners of Boston said yesterday.

The real estate firm, which specializes in representing tenants, said in its first-quarter market review that first-class office space asking office rents have gone up $2, to $38 in the first quarter.

At One Memorial Drive in East Cambridge, the Blackstone Group, which recently purchased the entire nationwide portfolio of Equity Office Properties Trust, raised the rents it is asking from $36 to $50.

"Continued interest from large office users has added to the bullishness in asking rents," Cresa's report said.

The Cambridge market has about 12.5 million square feet of office space and 5.5 million square feet of laboratory space. The vacancy situation for first-class space is 10.2 percent; lab vacancy is 12.5 percent.
(By Thomas C. Palmer Jr., Globe staff)