When Compared, Region's Sublease Numbers Not So Bad

PORTLAND-The amount of sublease space nationally is approximately 142 million square feet or roughly 24% of all available space nationally and equal to virtually all of the new office space built and delivered to the market in the years 2000 and 2001, according to a just-released mid-year report by Grubb & Ellis and PNC Real Estate Finance.

In Portland, there’s 1.4 million sf of sublease space, which is equal to just last year’s construction deliveries and constitutes 19.7% of total available space in the market, according to the local Grubb & Ellis office. If that sounds good compared to the national numbers, it sounds fabulous compared to other West Coast markets like San Jose, San Francisco and Seattle, where sublease space represents as much as 40% of all available space in those markets.

That’s where the good news ends, however, because when Portland’s direct vacancies are included and put up against the region’s average net absorption, there’s more than four years of overhang–not counting new deliveries.