Concur's HQ will be located a few blocks from shopping and restaurants at Bellevue Square and Lincoln Square

Concur, one of Seattle’s largest technology companies, is leaving its longtime home of Redmond for downtown Bellevue. The maker of travel and entertainment expense management software has secured a lease for 122,742 square-feet at 601 108th Avenue Northeast in the Key Center building, according to a SEC filing today. The company has outgrown its current space in Redmond, which has just under 100,000 square feet.

Key Center

Concur plans to occupy the downtown office next May, paying $3.5 million per year in rent. The 22-story building — located next to Bellevue’s transit center — was built in 2000 and includes 488,470 square feet of space.

“We are bullish on our prospects and are hiring as fast as we can bring people on right now,” said Rajeev Singh, president and COO of Concur. “We are looking at the next several years … and we had to find a place that would not only accommodate where we are today, but also accommodate our growth (in the future).”

Concur becomes one of the latest technology companies to secure space in downtown Bellevue, joining Expedia and Microsoft. The building will remain known as Key Center. But if Concur continues to gobble up more space at Key Center it has the option to rename the building and add more prominent signage to the facade.

Concur has been growing fast, gobbling up other companies and securing big contracts, including a recent government deal with the General Services Administration valued at $1.4 billion.

Founded in 1993 in Redmond by Mike Hilton and Rajeev Singh, Concur now employs more than 2,200 people worldwide. A good chunk of that growth has come in recent months. Between October and March, it added about 500 staffers worldwide, and Singh expects that employee growth pace to continue.

The company has 600 staffers in the Seattle area, and Singh said the new space will allow it to grow over time with a goal to reach capacity in the initial space within the first 18 months after occupancy. All of the company’s regional employees will make the move, with Singh saying they are big believers in having everyone housed in one open and collaborative space.

Rajeev Singh

“We are committed to the market for sure. This is where our headquarters is, and this is where our roots are, and we think that there is a great innovation economy here,” said Singh. “Some of the best engineers and high-tech talent in the world are right here. We want to make this operation move from a 600-person operation locally to a 1,000. We will redouble our efforts on finding great people here.”

The lease agreement, signed with Kilroy Realty, extends for 10 years. Concur will have the option to renew the lease for an additional five years. Concur — which boasts a market value of $3.75 billion — looked at different buildings in Redmond, Kirkland and Seattle.

But Singh — who declined to disclose details about incentives offered by municipalities — said that downtown Bellevue made the most sense given its central location; solid transportation options and nearby amenities.

This post has been updated with comments from Rajeev Singh.

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