SARASOTA, FL-The commercial office market in Southwest Florida is definitely in recovery mode. The second quarter office vacancy rate for Sarasota and Manatee counties fell slightly from the beginning of this year and is now below post recessionary lows.

Insurer The Allstate Corp. has signed a lease for 200,000 square feet of space at Innovation Park here.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL-Siemens Corp. has retained CBRE Inc. to sell a Hoffman Estates industrial property leased by a subsidiary of the German engineering and electronics firm.

PITTSBURGH–Quattro Investment Group has secured $53.7 million in construction financing for its planned two-building, 336,000-square-foot Class A office campus in Southpointe Office Park located 15 miles southwest of downtown Pittsburgh.

PASSAIC, NJ-Prime Healthcare has paid $5 million to extend its exclusivity rights to acquire St. Mary's Hospital here.

HARRISBURG, PA-A new provision in the state tax code is closing a loophole that previously allowed some major real estate investors to avoid paying transfer taxes on acquisitions.

NEW YORK CITY-The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, home to the Brooklyn Nets and soon to be home arena for the New York Islanders, has earned an LEED silver rating.

NEW YORK CITY-A flurry of deals in the second quarter have put a dent in the amount of sublease office space available in Manhattan.