Source: Washington Post —
I can offer two reasons why office-market watchers aren’t as pessimistic about the future of the sector as they should be — and not nearly pessimistic enough compared with all the negativity about housing and employment. First, they’re still thinking about office activity as a pandemic-related behavioral change that’s still in the process of normalizing. Reality: Office buildings are interest-rate and economically sensitive assets with deteriorating fundamentals despite still-booming employment growth.
Second is a lack of imagination. We know what it’s like when unemployment hits 10%, home prices plunge and there are millions of foreclosed homes. But we — particularly we in the media whose professional lives are so wrapped up in cities and offices — struggle to imagine how that plays out in business districts.
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