Albuquerque NM Office Market

Albuquerque NM Office Market still idling

As the U.S. office market trudges through a slow but steady recovery this year, the Albuquerque NM Office Market remains firmly stuck in a recession.

The latest figures for the second quarter come from CBRE in a report released to Albuquerque Business First Tuesday. The report shows the metro’s vacancy rate at 18.7 percent, virtually unchanged from the first quarter, when the rate was 18.9 percent.

Relocations and upgrades continue to dominate office movement, as many transactions were moves within the market or within an existing building, CBRE said. The two largest deals for the quarter were a 10,000-square-foot and an 8,600-square-foot relocation to similar-sized spaces, resulting in no gain in occupancy.

The median asking lease rate for the second quarter held steady at $15.50 per square foot, according to the report.

The report added there are no new construction projects in the planning stages because of the lack of significant leasing activity and the high double-digit vacancy rate.

The North I-25 submarket saw the most activity in the Albuquerque area, similar to the first quarter, with about 40 percent of leasing occurring there. Its vacancy rate declined from 19.8 percent to 13.9 percent during the period, while other major office submarket vacancy rates increased.

Analysts have their eye on the old PNM building on Silver Avenue Downtown as Bernalillo County considers consolidating its headquarters in the facility.

The potential move would fill 250,000 square feet of Downtown office space.

Source: Albuquerque Business First