The Office Market
The smallest of the office markets, West Orange County consists of 78 properties totaling approximately 4.5 million square feet. Activity in the West Orange County office market continued to increase in the second quarter, with a positive absorption of 72,668 square feet, up from 32,832 square feet in the first quarter of this year, bringing the year-to-date absorption to 105,500 square feet. Vacancy dropped again in the second quarter, to a rate of 8.97%, which is approximately an 11% drop from the second quarter of 1999. Although the average asking lease rate has declined to $1.65 per square foot per month in the second quarter from $1.73 in the first, that’s still a 3% increase from the second quarter of 1999.
The Industrial Market
Of the 36 million square feet of the West Orange County industrial market, 85% of the product is manufacturing and warehouse-type space. As of the second quarter, there were another four M & W; buildings under construction in West Orange County. There also were five research and development-type buildings under way. Combined, these buildings will add nearly 400,000 square feet to the industrial base. The availability rate for the industrial market dropped to 7.22% in the second quarter from 7.82% in the first. Total activity for the West Orange County industrial market reached more than 1 million square feet of space leased or sold in the second quarter, while the net absorption reached a positive 178,891 square feet.
The Retail Market
Although the West Orange County retail market is the smallest in the county, totaling approximately 8.1 million square feet, West Orange County is second in density in the market in terms of shop space per capita. West Orange County has approximately 430,000 square feet of new construction under way. Although West Orange County maintains a year-to-date positive absorption of 47,584 square feet, absorption fell off sharply in the second quarter, to a negative 37,802 square feet. The negative absorption increased the vacancy rate to 7.76% in the second quarter, up from 6.33% in the first quarter. But that vacancy rate is still down 14.8% from the second quarter of last year. Despite the vacancy-rate increase, the average asking rental rate increased 14 cents in the second quarter to $1.62 per square foot per month.
