Lee & Associates Riverside Releases First Quarter Industrial Market Summary

TORRANCE, Calif. - April 8, 2013 - PRLog -- The Riverside office of Lee & Associates, the nation’s largest broker-owned commercial real estate firm, has released its first quarter 2013 Industrial Market Summary for manufacturing/distribution buildings for the East Valley Market in Southern California’s Inland Empire.

The summary reports that the first quarter, following stabilization in 2012, showed exceptional activity and absorption figures, comparable to those of the previous quarter. Both activity and gross absorption were strong in the first quarter continuing the stabilized market trends. Absorption in 2012 of just over 12 million square feet surpassed the figures seen in 2011, a trend that is expected to continue throughout 2013, with first quarters absorption posting 3.4 million square feet.

Gross activity in the first quarter was almost 5.0 million square feet, with investment purchases and lease renewals accounting for 31 percent of the total. Investors will remain active in 2013 and existing tenants will likely renew existing leases due to the lack of quality product available in the marketplace.  

The report, which was prepared by Caroline Payan, marketing & research director of Lee & Associates Riverside, also shows gross activity in the 100,000-square-foot range remains extremely active as Inland Empire industrial buildings reap the benefits of the Enterprise Zones and the Inland Ports.

Vacancy rates decreased in the first quarter to 5.84 percent, and vacancy rates have now been on a declining path for almost four years from when it reached its peak at almost 20 percent in the second quarter of 2009. The report illustrates that 2013 will show more steady decreases in vacancy as the market remains stable and construction completions in the smaller building sizes are limited. There are currently no buildings under construction under 200,000  square feet.

“This first quarter report is reassuring as the economy continues to stabilize. We eagerly look forward to the rest of 2013 and are expecting strong activity in the industrial market in East Valley,” said Lee & Associates Riverside President David Illsley. For more information on the Riverside industrial market, visit Lee & Associates Riverside’s web site at: http://resources.lee-associates.com/asp/user/website/offi...