Ally Financial Moving to Southfield?

[emu steve]

Update: Ally Financial to Move into the recently-Gilbert-purchased One Detroit Center.
Jump to updated discussions >>

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"Detroit-based Ally Financial, formerly known as the GMAC finance arm of General Motors, is considering a move into Southfield that could potentially affect hundreds of jobs currently situated in downtown Detroit."

http://www.freep.com/story/money/bus...roit/22352413/

Guess job moves is a two-way street.

[mikeg19]

HOW DARE BROOKS PATTERSON POACH ALLY FINANCIAL FROM DETROIT? OUTRAGEOUS!!!!

Oh wait, isn't this just how the market works?

[animatedmartian]

The Renaissance Center and Southfield Town Center are both considered "Class A" office space and have similar asking rents in the low $20s per square foot gross. However, parking at Southfield Town Center is free.

Wait. Doesn't GM have a HUGE employee parking lot and garages right next door to the Ren Cen? Is that not free for employees?

Anyway, I imagine that expanding within the Ren Cen is somewhat difficult since most of the building is near full. This move likely had more to do with a lack of space within Detroit than the cost difference versus the suburbs [[where incidentally there is now an abundance of space).

http://www.gmrencen.com/Leasing/Listings.axis

[Danny]

Good riddance to them!

[T.Low]

Good riddance to them!

Spoken like a true Detroiter of the last 45 yrs!

[Scottathew]

Anyway, I imagine that expanding within the Ren Cen is somewhat difficult since most of the building is near full. This move likely had more to do with a lack of space within Detroit than the cost difference versus the suburbs [[where incidentally there is now an abundance of space).

http://www.gmrencen.com/Leasing/Listings.axis

I concur with your analysis.

Imagine if they run out of space and use it as an opportunity to be "lured" elsewhere with big tax breaks.

[hybridy]

I concur with your analysis.

Imagine if they run out of space and use it as an opportunity to be "lured" elsewhere with big tax breaks.

They're about to lose a ton of money on subprime auto lending. Seems prudent to have cheaper rent to cover the inevitable losses.

[Khorasaurus]

If they need 300,000 square feet, I don't think there's anywhere downtown that can accommodate them all in one place. Certainly not in move-in ready Class A space. The Penobscot might be able to fit them, but is that considered Class A?

So if they want to consolidate all of their 1,300 employees in one place in Class A space, their options in the region are to build new, renovate something huge like the Book Tower, or Southfield Town Center. That's it.

[stinkytofu]

If they need 300,000 square feet, I don't think there's anywhere downtown that can accommodate them all in one place. Certainly not in move-in ready Class A space. The Penobscot might be able to fit them, but is that considered Class A?

So if they want to consolidate all of their 1,300 employees in one place in Class A space, their options in the region are to build new, renovate something huge like the Book Tower, or Southfield Town Center. That's it.

Penobscot is terrible inside. I'd rather move my company to a wooden shack.

Bummer that they aren't building downtown. This would be the type of perfect new building to have on the block Meridian was going to build on. Would've been a huge boost downtown to consolidate all the employees there.

[Spartan]

Wait. Doesn't GM have a HUGE employee parking lot and garages right next door to the Ren Cen? Is that not free for employees?

Anyway, I imagine that expanding within the Ren Cen is somewhat difficult since most of the building is near full. This move likely had more to do with a lack of space within Detroit than the cost difference versus the suburbs [[where incidentally there is now an abundance of space).

http://www.gmrencen.com/Leasing/Listings.axis

Free for employees, sure, but I'm sure Ally has to rent the spots from GM

[iheartthed]

Wait. Doesn't GM have a HUGE employee parking lot and garages right next door to the Ren Cen? Is that not free for employees?

I thought GM doesn't own Ally anymore?

[jiminnm]

I thought GM doesn't own Ally anymore?

GM spun Ally off to the public in 2008-2009, but kept a minority chunk of ownership. Since then, there have been numerous transactions between Ally and GM regarding different pieces of the prior GMAC business. I am not sure what the ownership is today. GM recently announced that they were withdrawing their auto financing business from Ally and Ally's CEO resigned last week.

I expect the move out of the RenCen is to complete the separation from GM.

[animatedmartian]

Yea Penoscbot needs renovations. Yet the landlord [[same guy who currently owns the Silverdome) would say that tenants aren't coming due to a lack of parking.

A 300,000 square foot office building would basically be a duplicate of One Kennedy Square. And given how much people want taller buildings around, I think it would be kind of wasteful just to build new if Ally was going to be the sole tenant.

[bailey]

Yea Penoscbot needs renovations. Yet the landlord [[same guy who currently owns the Silverdome) would say that tenants aren't coming due to a lack of parking.

A 300,000 square foot office building would basically be a duplicate of One Kennedy Square. And given how much people want taller buildings around, I think it would be kind of wasteful just to build new if Ally was going to be the sole tenant.

And by the end of the summer One Kennedy will be mostly vacant as Meridian moves across the street to the Compuware Building.

[Khorasaurus]

And by the end of the summer One Kennedy will be mostly vacant as Meridian moves across the street to the Compuware Building.

Not mostly vacant. They only have 40,000 square feet out of about 250,000 total.

Also, one existing tenant is already planning to expand into vacated Meridian space: http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...lth-moves-into

[313WX]

And by the end of the summer One Kennedy will be mostly vacant as Meridian moves across the street to the Compuware Building.

Ernst and Young is no longer in One Kennedy Square?

[Dexlin]

Ernst and Young is no longer in One Kennedy Square?

Ernst & Young is still there. It's also likely that they take up less than 50% of the leasable space in that building, which could technically leave the building "mostly" empty depending on how much space Meridian is taking up.

[ParisianLesion]

Meridian is only taking up 2 floors out of 10 [[including first floor retail and common) in One Kennedy, or just over 40k sq ft. One of the floors they are due to vacate is being taken by Marketing Associates, which is expanding from their current one floor. So Meridian moving across the street doesn't come anywhere close to leaving One Kennedy "mostly" empty. Redico is only going to need to fill the equivalent of one floor or around 25k sq ft. Considering the location and trajectory of the CBD, I don't think they are going to have a very hard time of that.

Other tenants in One Kennedy include: Walbridge, Ernst and Young, Visteo, Marketing and Assoc., and Ryan and Co.

[Mind field]

Covisint, Ally, Cadillac. Who's next to leave Detroit? It seems it's two steps forward, one back.

[Bucket]

Isn't there a vacant or near-vacant multi-story office building next to Ford Field near Madison/I-375?

[animatedmartian]

Isn't there a vacant or near-vacant multi-story office building next to Ford Field near Madison/I-375?

I don't believe that building is vacant. There's one company that takes up most of the fifth floor. It's also not very big. It's only 100,000-something square feet so Ally wouldn't be moving there either way.

[tkelly1986]

This would be a huge momentum blow. I know Ally is a fledgling company, but 1,300 jobs consolidating in the city could be great news. Real estate experts, do you think this is a done deal? What are the chances a developer in Detroit could may a play? Anchor tenet on the Hudson Site?

[ferndalien]

I know Ally is a fledgling company...

Ally's name may only be 6 years old, but it was founded in 1919 as GMAC.

[Scottathew]

Ally's name may only be 6 years old, but it was founded in 1919 as GMAC.

I use Ally for my bank, and I've been very satisfied. Their interest rates are high. They rebate ATM fees, so I can go to any ATM and withdraw cash without fees. I deposit checks through my mobile phone. Their customer service is really good too.

[Mind field]

If Ally does actually consolidate in downtown Detroit, someone better get Brooksies one huge xanax pill