While the two firms' first-quarter reports may quibble on the numbers, there is no argument where the hardest hit submarket is. CB Richard Ellis puts vacancy in River North at 28%; Jones Lang LaSalle says it is 22.47% when sublease space is included.
Rents Downtown dropped 0.81% in 2002, according to Jones Lang LaSalle, and the company predicts rates will drop 2.32% in 2003. CB Richard Ellis claims rates dropped 10% to 20% in 2002.
"A good percentage of the activity that is occurring is due, in part, to the aggressive economics that landlords are offering," says CB Richard Ellis SVP Menaheim Deitcher.
North Michigan Avenue is seen as the strongest of the major submarkets. Depending on who is reporting, direct vacancy is 7.5%, according to CB Richard Ellis, or 8.77% by Jones Lang LaSalle's accounting.
CB Richard Ellis finds one other submarket with a single-digit vacancy rate. The firm sees a 9.7% direct vacancy rate in the East Loop. However, Jones Lang LaSalle puts it at 13.15% there.
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