Looming Job Cuts:

May be the word "doom" just brings out the pessimist inpeople, but 66% of respondents answered this week's Quick Poll onthe side that believes job cuts will "Spell Doom for the OfficeMarket" versus 34% who say they "Won't Have a Vacancy-Rate Impact."Jeff Osborn, a managing director of CB Richard Ellis' Anaheimoffice, sees the glass at half cycle—in short, his take is thatthings may get worse, but they will eventually get better.<pNo doubt rising unemployment is going to have an impact on theoffice market. I wouldn't be in the camp of saying itsdoom and gloom only because I've been in this business 22years. When I started out in Orange County, there was approximately50 million sf of office space and vacancy exceeded 20%. Today wehave a base that's approximately 100 millionsf—it's doubled—and we have a 15% vacancy.

Down cycles are very common in our industry, but we always comeout of it and markets do turn around. Doom and gloom sounds likescorched Earth and the end of the world. I would have to say Iwouldn't go that far.