Real estate company CoStar bolts Washington, D.C., for Virginia
ARLINGTON, Va. — Real estate data company CoStar Group is moving its headquarters from Washington, D.C., to northern Virginia, a move that will bring about 650 jobs to the state.
The company, which operates the websites apartments.com and homes.com, said Tuesday that it expects to move by the end of the year to the Rosslyn section of Arlington County, just across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital. country.
The move is expected to result in the relocation of 500 jobs from DC, plus the creation of 150 new jobs.
Virginia is providing $4.75 million in economic incentives to lure the company. The move comes as the Legislature considers a $2 billion deal to move the NBA’s Washington Wizards and the NHL’s Washington Capitals from their downtown Washington homes to northern Virginia.
Critics of the sports team deal have questioned the wisdom of poaching businesses from the region’s economic core to the suburbs.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin said in a statement: “As states compete for business and jobs, the Commonwealth’s diverse, world-class talent, exceptional quality of life and stable business environment continue to stand out. We are proud that CoStar has served Virginia chosen as his home.”
As part of the deal, CoStar will pay Arlington County nearly $14 million for the exclusive use of an observation deck on the 31st floor of the office tower it is purchasing. The observation deck is open to the public.
The province says the money will be used to fund the reconstruction of a park in Rosslyn.
CoStar has more than 6,200 employees and already has a large presence in Virginia; The research and data analytics company is headquartered in Richmond and has more than 1,000 employees there, with plans to expand.
Arlington County has successfully recruited numerous corporate headquarters in recent years, most famously landing Amazon’s second headquarters in 2018. Boeing, the US headquarters of Nestle and European supermarket giant Lidl are among recent entrants.
JBG Smith, the real estate company selling the office tower to CoStar, declined comment Wednesday.