Metro Vancouver's office market is posting an 8.4 per cent vacancy rate, up from 6.9 per cent a year ago, as rising subleases and new suburban construction adds to the inventory of vacant space. In the second quarter, 500,000 square feet of new inventory came to the market, along with 150,000 square feet of sublease space.
In downtown Vancouver, only 4.6 per cent of all space is available, an improvement from the first quarter of this year when 5 per cent vacancies were reported, according to a survey by Cushman Wakefield.
Office rental rates have started to stabilize, holding at an average of $20 per-square-foot, region-wide, in the past nine months, but well below the peak $24 per-square-foot average of mid-2008.
For the latest news on the Metro Vancouver office market, see the November issue of Western Investor
