The CARW/Xceligent second quarter numbers show continued strength in all sectors of the commercial real estate market. “For more than a year, all sectors have been strong,” said Tracy Johnson, CEO for CARW. “New construction has brought a lot of inventory to the market, and a great deal of movement throughout the region.” Office, Industrial and Retail sectors are showing great strength West of Milwaukee in Wauwatosa and Waukesha.
The Southeastern Wisconsin Office Market vacancy increased slightly in the second quarter of 2016 as a result of new inventory being added to the market. The strongest submarket is Wauwatosa/Mayfair with the Irgens Meadowland Research and Technology Center adding over 101,000 square feet of class A office space. The strengthening office market is also driving up square foot direct asking rate to $19.32, approximately $0.72 from Q2 2015. The greatest loss for the quarter was due to the departure of the FBI from 330 E Kilbourn.
The Industrial Market continues to show strength although vacancy rates climbed 0.1% for the second consecutive quarter and is at 4.2% due to 1.16 square feet of new inventory delivered to the market. The Waukesha market outperformed all others in Southeast Wisconsin with the new construction and delivery of the Froedtert facility and occupancy of Sharp Packaging.
The second quarter of 2016 for the Retail Market was strong, especially for the Waukesha market. “The retail market remains robust across all sectors including large format, grocery, fashion and restaurants,” said Brian Vanevenhoven with NAI ML Commercial. The new Meijer store and Planet Fitness were the largest deliveries in the retail segment; both in Waukesha.