Although having a negative absorption of 60,427 sf in the third quarter, it was a significant improvement compared with the negative 175,131 sf in the second quarter, the report states. The county's office market absorbed an extra 175,122 sf of space in the third quarter, according to a similar report by Grubb & Ellis. Of nine suburban submarkets, four had space gains, and Boca Raton lead the county with a positive absorption of 145,903 sf.

Submarkets with a negative absorption that quarter included Delray Beach with negative 18,180 sf; Royal Palm Beach/Wellington, negative 5,812 sf; and North Palm Beach/Palm Beach Gardens, negative 1,111 sf, the Grubb & Ellis report states. That report also found that class A space saw 173,854 sf of positive growth, while class B and C space combined reported just 1,268 sf in positive growth.

According to the Cushman & Wakefield report, the Delray Beach submarket saw increased leasing in the third quarter, causing the direct vacancy rate to decrease from 13.8% at the end of the second quarter to 12.4% at the end of the third quarter. Delray Beach's direct vacancy rate, one of the county's lowest, should continue to drop as the submarket's downtown is going through a major revitalization, which may include new mixed-use projects, it adds. Overall, Palm Beach County experienced a decline in vacancy by 50 basis points to 15.4% in the third quarter, according to Grubb & Ellis.