Office Vacancies Drop to 10-Year Low 

Dallas’ 5.3 million square feet of positive absorption over a 12-month period was nearly twice as high as second-ranked Silicon Valley.

HOUSTON—Office vacancies across the major metro areas reached a 10-year low in December, Transwestern said Monday. The significant net absorption that contributed to the 11.5% vacancy rate at the end of the fourth quarter was geographically dispersed across regions.

Dallas/Fort Worth posted the highest annual total for net absorption at nearly 5.3 million square feet, a 64% increase over the previous 12 months. It also led in Q4 absorption at more than 1.5 million square feet. However, Ryan Tharp, director of research for Transwestern’s Dallas office, points out that the majority of major markets contributed to this consistent downward trend.