RSM moving Center City office with full floor lease in trophy tower
Professional services firm RSM US LLP has signed a long-term lease to relocate its Philadelphia office, moving a block away into 22,340 square feet at 1735 Market St.
The firm specializing in assurance, tax and consulting services will relocate from 25,827 square feet at the Duane Morris Plaza at 30 S. 17th St.
The new office at 1735 Market is planned to occupy the entire 21st floor of the 54-story building. RSM plans to move in during the second quarter of this year.
While the new space is a slight downsize, the move is meant to support the firm’s “significant growth,” RSM’s Philadelphia Metro Market Leader Paul Marvel said in a statement.
1735 Market is over 90% leased.
While Philadelphia’s office vacancy has remained around 20% in recent years, trophy-class buildings, including 1735 Market, were 89.5% occupied in the fourth quarter, according to brokerage firm JLL. In recent years, properties like 1735 Market have benefited from office tenants’ flight to quality.
Marvel said the move to 1735 Market is part of “fostering our unrivaled culture and talent experience.” Chicago-based RSM also has offices in Blue Bell and Harrisburg.
RSM ranks as the fifth largest accounting firm in the U.S. with over $4 billion in revenue, according to Inside Public Accounting. The firm ranks ninth in the Philadelphia market with more than 120 local CPAs, according to Business Journal data. RSM has more than 500 Philadelphia-area employees.
Other tenants at 1735 Market include accounting and consulting firm KPMG, law firms Saul Ewing and Ballard Spahr and financial services firm Fidelity. Later this year, law firm Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller plans to move into 22,000 square feet at the building while The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. is vacating 50,000 square feet.
The 1.3 million-square-foot building formerly known as the BNY Mellon Bank Center is known for its presence in the Philadelphia skyline with its pyramid crowned top.
Owners Silverstein Properties and Arden Group recently renovated 1735 Market, creating a new amenities floor, redesigning the building’s lobby and front entrance and achieving LEED Gold certification for sustainability.
The Duane Morris Plaza, meanwhile, is set to undergo lobby renovations and system upgrades. The building owned by Oaktree Capital Management faced an uncertain financial situation prior to law firm Duane Morris signing a lease renewal. As part of the renewal, Oaktree Capital Management agreed to the renovations and secured a loan extension.
Newmark and Cushman & Wakefield represented RSM in the lease at 1735 Market. Silverstein Properties’ Keith A. Cody and Gordon Hough represented the landlord internally.
