SAN DIEGO, CA—A new report from Cassidy Turley San Diego shows that San Diego County industrial vacancies have fallen for the seventh consecutive quarter, currently standing at 9.3% for its lowest level since mid-2011.

The Cassidy Turley report shows that there were 366,165 square feet of positive net absorption for the three months ending March 31. It also shows that that more than 4 million square feet of space has been absorbed countywide since June 30, 2011, equating to a quarterly average of 577,000 square feet.

“We are seeing a slow and steady rebound in the industrial market with sustained improvements in net absorption, decreasing vacancy and stabilizing rents,” said Bryce Aberg, senior vice president with Cassidy Turley San Diego's industrial division. “While we have yet to reach pre-recession activity levels, which averaged 648,000 square feet of quarterly net absorption in 2006 and 2007, the market should continue to improve at a measurable, healthy rate throughout the rest of 2013 and into 2014.”

The Cassidy Turley first quarter industrial report shows that of the 4,949 existing properties surveyed, 4% reported positive net absorption of 2.21 million square feet, 4% reported negative net absorption of 1.85 million square feet, and 92% had no activity. The average move-in space size was 10,486 square feet, up 36% over a year ago and compared to an average move-out size of 9,186 square feet.

Countywide vacancy for all industrial product types, including sublease space, has fallen steadily with improved absorption. The current rate of 9.3% compares to the peak rate of 12.7 percent as of fourth quarter 2009, and is 160 basis points below the five-year quarterly average of 10.9%. In keeping with historical trends, the popular Central County area reports the lowest vacancy, 7.4%, followed by North County at 8.9%, and South County at 10.6%.

Cassidy Turley reports that asking rents for all industrial product types have remained stable over the last three years, hovering between 79 cents and 81 cents per month per square foot triple net (NNN).