SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA—The economy has recoveredto the point where cranes are in the sky in many areas of SouthernCalifornia. GlobeSt.com spoke exclusively with several experts inthe market about which submarkets have the most spec-office development.

Jerry Holdner, VP of market research forVoit Real Estate Services, tells GlobeSt.com,"Currently in Southern California, there are 70 office buildingstotaling 6 million square feet underconstruction," and he adds that the great majorityof this, if not all of it, is speculative. "LosAngeles is leading the charge with 34 buildings totaling 3.3million square feet under construction. Of this total, sixbuildings totaling 1.3 million square feet is in the Downtownsubmarket, five buildings totaling 890,000 square feet are in theMid-Wilshire submarket and three buildings totaling 500,000 squarefeet are the Playa Vista submarket. Orange County has 14 buildingstotaling 1.9 million square feet under construction. Of thattotal, 11 buildings totaling 1.7 million square feet are in theIrvine Spectrum submarket. San Diego has 12buildings totaling 625,000 square feet under construction. TheInland Empire has five buildings under construction totaling100,000 square feet."

In Los Angeles, the area along the coast from El Segundo toSanta Monica has been among the strongest and most publicized fordevelopment and redevelopment, GarySteinhardt, senior director, investment group, forAmerican Realty Advisors, tells GlobeSt.com."However, land is scarce and expensive, making sites hard tofind. Hollywood, the center of the entertainment industry, isseeing significant investment in all property types, includingoffice construction, which—like in Downtown—is complemented byapartment construction and improvingretail and entertainment amenities. In thesemarkets, traditional space appears to be lagging, and demand forunique and/or creative space appears verystrong."