Boston Ranks Third Globally In Office Rent Growth (+12.2%) and First in Capital Value Growth (+34.6%)
Greater Boston moved up 10 spots to seventh globally in a survey of metro areas' commercial real estate markets and economic vitality.
JLL's 2015 City Momentum Index ranks 120 cities in 37 categories related to the vitality of their economies and commercial real estate markets. The top five cities in this year's index were London, San Jose, Beijing, Shenzhen and Shanghai.
The Boston area had the third-fastest-growing office rents worldwide in 2014, trailing only Singapore and San Francisco, according to a survey of metro areas by JLL. Rents locally increased 12.2 percent, according to the report.
JLL Strategic Research Director Lori Mabardi said Boston's innovation economy and strong university presence accounted for the city's move up in the rankings.
Boston ranked first globally with a 34.6-percent increase in capital value growth.
Foreign investors drove up prices of the Boston region's commercial real estate, with investors such as Toronto-based Oxford Properties Group and Norges Bank Investment Management buying trophy office buildings in Boston and Cambridge.
The index is designed to identify which cities are changing the fastest by combining real estate data with socioeconomic factors.
Short-term economic variables such as changes in GDP and population, air passenger traffic and corporate headquarters presence represent 40 percent of JLL's model. Short-term commercial real estate measures represent 30 percent of the model. The remaining 30 percent is based upon factors likely to affect future economic strength, including educational infrastructure, patent applications and presence of investment firms.
