Office Market Still Weak But Leasing Activity Improves

ORLANDO-Sunlight is beginning to appear in some sections of the metro areas 30.5-million-sf office market but overall the inventory remains “anemic,” according to a new second-quarter analysis by the local office of Cushman & Wakefield of Florida Inc.

The direct vacancy level among 427 buildings monitored by C&W in 12 submarkets is 17.3%, up from 16.6% in the first quarter. Additional sublease space continues to enter the market, increasing by over 100,000 sf from the first quarter. The Maitland submarket continues to hold the greatest concentration of sublease space with 344,272 sf.

“Although the office market continued to experience a surplus of sublease availabilities and an oversupply of first-generation space, demand for office space appears to have increased slightly,” says Larry D. Richey, senior vice president and managing broker for C&W’s Central Florida operations in Orlando and Tampa.