BOMA International, Yardi and Brightline Strategies Announce Research Partnership to Conduct Commercial Real Estate COVID-19 Impact Studies

National Research Series to Assess Financial and Operational Risks Resulting from the Coronavirus Crisis; Forecast Implications on Market and Commercial Portfolio Performance; and Provide Actionable Intelligence on Key Workplace Decision-Points and Pathways to Maximize Asset Resiliency

WASHINGTON, DC – The Building Owners
and Managers Association (BOMA) International, Yardi and Brightline Strategies
announced today a strategic partnership to field three, nationwide commercial
real estate COVID-19 impact studies. The rolling research program is designed
to assess the latest in tenant decision-maker sentiments relating to COVID-19,
as well as its impacts on their businesses and attitudes towards the physical
work environment. The findings will demonstrate how such perceptions and
beliefs affect real estate decisions going forward and their implications on
perceived value of office space and utilization, relocation and renewal
likelihoods, rent premiums, future vacancy rates, portfolio risk exposure, and
return-to-work positioning, programming and practices. The goal is to provide
real estate investors, owners and operators predictive models on market and
portfolio resiliency over the next six to 24 months based on the dynamics shown
to affect the performance of commercial assets both positively and negatively.

“COVID-19 is potentially the
largest disruptive force facing the commercial real estate industry and its
tenancy in our lifetimes,” said Henry H. Chamberlain, APR, FASAE, CAE,
president and COO of BOMA International. “The opportunity to gain timely
insights into space considerations and planning from a wide swath of tenant
decision- makers and influencers will be of tremendous value to BOMA members
and the broader commercial real estate industry.”

Building on a Mid-Atlantic COVID-19 impact study fielded by Brightline in April-May 2020, the three upcoming studies will be conducted among space decision-makers and office influencers/users with more than 2,500 respondents targeted for each. The new study was developed collaboratively between the partnered organizations with input from several national and regional commercial real estate owners and operators. With access to tenant insights provided by BOMA members, Brightline clients and Yardi customers, as well as other proprietary recruitment methodologies and list sources, the studies will include a representative, nationwide sample of tenants stratified by market/location, industry, stage of growth, number of employees, office size, rent rate, renewal date, asset class/type and other key demographic characteristics and psychographic attributes.

Underwritten through a grant from
Yardi, the first study will begin fielding in August 2020 and is expected to
close by month’s end. The second study will be conducted in mid-Q4 2020, with
the third and final survey in the series tentatively scheduled to run in
February 2021.

“This research will provide deep
customer insight for property owners, and hopefully spur innovation like
improving COVID-related building health to accelerate reopening,” said Robert
Teel, Vice President, Global Solutions at Yardi. “In most times of rapid
change, opportunities for growth also tend to follow the first steps of
recovery. We feel this series of surveys could potentially highlight new
initiatives and investment opportunities throughout the year.”

Once complete, each study will
provide industry stakeholders key insights around the financial and operational
risks resulting from the coronavirus crisis, reprioritization of experiential
and environmental programming based on recent shifts in tenant wants, needs and
expectations, and tactical guidance to maximize portfolio resiliency going
forward.

“Fielding a series of studies in
partnership with organizations like BOMA International, Yardi and leading real
estate firms across the United States will provide unprecedented insights and
transparency as to the effects of COVID-19 on commercial real estate portfolios
and the tenants who occupy them,” said Michael Broder, president and CEO of
Brightline Strategies. “These studies not only identify the critical factors
impacting future occupancy but also provide the data to model likely outcomes
across markets, in a specific portfolio and/or asset, or on a tenant
segmentation basis. We look forward to sharing these important insights in the
near term.”

BOMA
International, Yardi and Brightline will be releasing the results from the
first study in September 2020. For those interested in having their portfolios
included in the studies, please email participation inquiries to [email protected].

For information on study
progress, release date and upcoming webinars, please visit www.brightlinestrategies.com/covid.html.