The Ann Arbor-based commercial realty company surveyed the owners and managers of some 282 properties, which have a total of 10.2 million sf, in December in order to prepare the report. As of Dec. 31, the market vacancy rate was 10.3%, compared to 9.9% at the end of 2002.
Swisher reports that the office vacancy rate in the Ann Arbor area remained essentially flat at 8.76%. Flex space usage, however, saw vacancies at 14.6% at year's end, compared to 13.2% in 2002. The most dramatic changes were on the north side of Ann Arbor, where the vacancy rate halved to 3%, and downtown, where the rate almost doubled to 12.9%.
A relatively small amount of new space—110,000 sf—became available in 2003, the Swisher report says, but went on to explain that in 2004 some 600,000 sf of space is expected to come on the market from four building projects, including:
• 226,000 sf at The Connections at Domino's Farms in Ann Arbor Township.
• 255,000 sf in a new building at Avis Farms South in Pittsfield Township.
• 120,000 sf in Phase Two of the South State Commons.
• 32,000 sf at the Concourse Office Center in Pittsfield Township.
The volume of new space that will become available in 2004 means that area vacancy rates are unlikely to improve soon, the Swisher report concludes.
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