MIAMI—With a limited number of industrial listings in South Florida, the landscape is more competitive than ever. Sperry Van Ness' Miami office is stepping its game up to meet the intensifying demand.

Sperry just added Christian Peter, a 12-year commercial real estate veteran, to his roster. He comes on board as a senior advisor at a time when vacancy at locations with less than 50,000 square feet averages in the 4% range, according to Marcus & Millichap's latest industrial research report.

“He has an impressive track record and extensive knowledge of the industrial market,” says Matt Rotolante, managing director of Sperry's Miami office. “What we admire is his in-depth approach to every transaction, dedication to his clients and exceptional customer service, which keep his clients happy. ”

Before joining SVN, Christian was a broker with NAI's Doral office. He recently negotiated two lease transactions for both new office space and a storage yard in Plantation for Gerelco Traffic Controls, the regional firm that installs traffic signals, lighting and signage along Interstate 75 and Interstate 595 in Broward County.

Perhaps Peter's most notable transaction is the sale of a 160,000-square-foot flex building to institutional buyer Terreno Realty. He has also negotiated the leases of a warehouse-showroom spanning 57,000 square feet for Vanity Solutions and a 28,000-square-foot warehouse-showroom for Compac. He also leased warehouse space to Pollo Tropical.

Before relocating to South Florida, Peter was responsible for the property management of seven office parks in New Jersey spanning over 500,000 square feet. He managed all leasing, marketing, construction and renovation operations, working with such tenants as Federal Express, Terminix and Sysco.

“The anticipated growth in import and export activity is helping to attract a diverse pool of prospective buyers to Miami-Dade County, intensifying demand for the limited number of listings,” reports M&M. “Significant demand from owner-users is also present, and many are more willing to pay higher prices to locate near clients or distribution routes, putting downward pressure on cap rates.”