WILMINGTON — Two longtime commercial realtors say there’s been some surprising movement in the greater Wilmington market in the last quarter as the White House continues creating big waves with its trade policy and goals on slashing the federal deficit.
Two days after President Donald Trump announced the sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs, CBRE Vice President of the Delaware office Brian Hopkins held a meeting with a Fortune 500 company to test the waters for possible manufacturing space.
“Our clients said that they needed to survey the space since they just have small space in Europe right now,” Hopkins said, who did not identify the company, citing ongoing discussions. “They want to engage the market for some opportunities because they manufacture overseas, and the tariffs are going to be problematic. That can be good for Delaware.”
Of course, there’s a world of difference about considering onshoring manufacturing processes to the United States and signing the lease. It will also take years to build the factories and the processes that the Trump administration wants to see in the U.S.
But there’s still some inquiries out there. Hopkins also pointed out that northern Delaware has a good inventory of older industrial space that could easily be retrofitted – and cutting down some of the costs compared to building from the ground up.
Outside of the hope of more manufacturing companies relocating to the First State, CBRE Vice President John Kaczowka noted that there’s more big law firms exploring whether to take the plunge and open up a Delaware office. The state is well known for having come to more than two million business entities, making the Court of Chancery a premiere place for corporate attorneys to argue cases.
He and Hopkins have conducted ten tours in the first two weeks of the first quarter of 2025 for law firms. It’s still tried and true what companies are looking for: on-site or close by parking, in-house lunch and exercise options.
“If you got all that stuff, your property is well leased,” Kaczowka said. “There’s multiple that are national and have committed to Delaware and are looking to grow. That’s a real positive trend we’re seeing.”
With the office market seemingly reaching the end of the worst of the pandemic-spurred shedding of space, both CBRE executives said it’s still a tenants market in Wilmington. With the Buccini/Pollin Group dominating office-to-conversion in the city and other firms like the Pettinaro Group turning for a mixed-use concept at Barley Mill Plaza, the duo said it’s more of a shift in what amenities will be offered, sparking more renovations for older properties.
“When you think about what’s reinvented itself, it’s like Little Falls Business Center and the Delaware Corporate Center. Those owners have a good location and good amenities around it, and then they just repositioned it. Because of that, those kinds of buildings have been leased up,” Kaczowka said.
“If you’re looking for 15,000 square feet, there’s like five opportunities for class A in the downtown district,” Hopkins added. “If you want Class B, you could spend all day looking.”
The biggest movement in leases however, may be coming from the medical sector. Delaware Neurosurgical Group, P.A. has recently signed a lease for an office in the New Castle Corporate Commons, and another sale in the works.
More medical providers affiliated with large companies have already tested the market with shared space, and now they’re starting to branch out on their own, Hopkins said.
“We’re usually not a market for that. You see it here and there, but not several at one time,” he said. “You have office landlords that are considering that use because in the past, there hasn’t been much demand.”
