Kim Gatley Sr. Vice President & Director of Research NAI REOC Austin (bio) Got a Commercial Real Estate Need or Question? Ask One of Our Trusted Advisors
In direct correlation with an improving job market, Austin office market fundamentals continued to improve in the final quarter of 2011. Healthy leasing activity, especially in the North and Northwest submarkets, contributed to positive net absorption that topped one million square feet for the year. Citywide vacancy remains elevated at 17.4% but significantly improved compared to more than 20% recorded at the close of 2010. The Austin CBD closed the year with a vacancy rate of 13.7%. …Read Entire Post
Despite the economy, investors are bullish on the prospects for office buildings, the largest commercial real estate sector, a survey finds.
As 2011 came to a close, some commercial real estate experts found promising signs in often troubled markets. The office market is gaining interest from investors amid a mixed bag of property-related economic fundamentals such as improvement in employment and business expansions, a recent survey showed. Commercial real estate continues to offer attractive yields compared with alternative investment vehicles, said respondents to a quarterly poll by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The KBS Real Estate Investment Trust III has bought Las Cimas IV in Southwest Austin. The 138,008-square-foot office building is in the Las Cimas office park, eight miles from downtown. California-based KBS REIT III will pay $35.9 million plus closing costs for the property, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
California-based KBS Real Estate Investment Trust III, a unit of KBS Capital Advisors LLC, has completed its purchase of Domain Gateway, a 173,962-square-foot office building in Northwest Austin.
It’s one of the largest local office buys this year. The five-floor building was under contract for $48 million, according to Co-Star Realty Information Inc.
VR Business Sales, the business intermediary company, is moving its operation to 11940 Jollyville Road, in order to accommodate its need for more space to support the growing business demand. VR, focused on Valued Representation, “Has Sold More Businesses in the World than Anyone” and continues to support that effort by providing value to its customers here in Central Texas with its new office. Robby Eaves and Hilton Hunt of NAI REOC Austin represented VR Business Sales in the lease of 1,443 square feet of office space.
A local property investor has bought a large Class B office building in Northwest Austin. The deal is one of the largest this year in the local office market. Aspen Growth Properties Inc. sold the 68,639-square-foot Colina West property to MM Value Investment Co. LLC, a group headed by local investor Mark McAllister.
In need of more room for its growing workforce, Austin-based HomeAway Inc. is expanding its local presence with a lease for more than 26,000 square feet of space in the Penn Field complex on South Congress Avenue.
Office Depot Inc. may open a new corporate office at Amber Oaks office park in Northwest Austin, said Joe Vining, vice president of economic development at the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce.
VR Business Sales
