As for the current state of things, it depends on who you ask. Vacancy could have ended the quarter below 10% or above 14%. Net absorption could have been positive by a quarter of a million square feet or negative to the tune of nearly 2 million square feet. The differences are typically due to the type and size of space tracked, when a space is considered vacant and whether or not subleases are included in calculations.

Restrepo Consulting Group LLC, which tracks 106 million square feet, estimates current vacancy at 14.2%, up from 13.2% at the end of the second quarter thanks to 1.8 million square feet of negative net absorption. "Who would have thought back in the first quarter of 2007, when we had an industrial vacancy rate of 4.3% that we would be at 14.2% today," says principal John Restrepo. "It's quite extraordinary how quickly and deeply our once vaunted industrial market has been impacted by the recession."

In contrast, Grubb & Ellis, which tracks 98.5 million square feet, says overall vacancy remained fairly flat at 12.8% thanks to 234,870 square feet of positive net absorption. "Fueled by decreasing lease rates and aggressive landlords, many tenants found better deals in other submarkets and chose to relocate and/or downsize at a rate they could afford," states the G&E report. "Short-term leases with dramatically low lease rates remain popular with tenants who continue to have the upper hand when negotiating with vulnerable landlords."