Naitonal Real Estate Investor
By Sebastian Obando, Staff Writer

Office buildings constructed in the 1980s are facing the biggest challenge from the newer properties coming on the market today, but can also best withstand the competition if they are properly renovated, according to industry experts.

In gateway cities around the country, including Boston, Los Angeles and Chicago, the story appears to be similar to the one playing out in Manhattan's Hudson Yards, according to Tim Johnson, partner at NBBJ, a global architecture firm. The 1980s saw the biggest office construction boom before the current one. “A lot of those buildings were designed… in this post-modern style. The[materials], design aesthetic are some things that aren't really attractive today,” Johnson says.

The existing stock of U.S. office buildings can be separated into four categories—those built in the roaring 20s, the 1950s late modern era, the 1980s post-modern era and the present era, according to Johnson.

“I would say that the [post-modern era] 1980s buildings have, certainly, a little bit more robust systems,” says Johnson. “They're designed in ways that are a little bit more flexible.” Read more.