NEW YORK CITY—An industry analyst is forecasting a possibledecline in average asking rents on sixth avenue and along the sidestreets stretching from 42^nd to 59^th streets.Savills Studley chief economist Heidi Learner says in a new reportthat in light of expected tenant relocations from the area and somespace having sat idle for some time, availability rates may trendupward, forcing landlords to get creative in marketing theirspace.

“In the absence of activity—given upcoming lease expiries andtenant relocations—Sixth Avenue will see an increase inavailability rates,” she tells GlobeSt.com. “If that happens, thebalance of power really will shift in favor of the tenant. We couldsee higher tenant improvement allowances, free rent for a certainnumber of months, or downward pressure on rents is another possibleoutcome.”

According to Learner, the area's current availability rate is12.4% and that could rise to 13.6% because of several blocks ofspace “becoming vacant over the next seven to nine quarters.Additionally, several moves out of the area could push theavailability rate into the high-teens.”