Cushman & Wakefield | Commerce Las Vegas Q1 Marketbeat Reports Convey Strengthening Las Vegas Commercial Real Estate Market

LAS VEGAS, NV--(Marketwired - May 8, 2013) - The Las Vegas office of Cushman & Wakefield | Commerce (www.comre.com) has released its Q1 Marketbeat Snapshot reports. The reports reflect a drop in vacancy rates and an increase in leasing activity in most areas, signifying a sense of cautious optimism for the Las Vegas commercial real estate market overall in the first quarter of this year.

The full Las Vegas Market reports for the Office, Industrial and Retail sectors for Q1 2013 are available for download at http://www.comre.com/research.cfm.

"The Las Vegas area, particularly Downtown, is witnessing a major transformation because of individual investment and new businesses, many of which are from out of state investing in the area," said Ed Turpin, Managing Director for the Cushman & Wakefield | Commerce Las Vegas office. "This increased attention brings along the challenge that, because there is a decreasing availability of space, rental rates will likely begin to increase."

Office Snapshot
In Q1, the Las Vegas Office market continued its positive progression as overall vacancy rates declined by 4.1 percentage points to 20.3 percent by the end of the quarter. With several companies looking to relocate Downtown from other parts of the state and from out of state, this submarket had the strongest numbers with an average direct vacancy rate of 7.1 percent. The growth in the Downtown area, however, stands in contrast against the suburban market, which has a relatively high vacancy rate of 22.0 percent.

Industrial Snapshot
The Las Vegas Industrial market in the first quarter of 2013 saw a dramatic 228.1 percent increase in leasing compared to Q1 of 2012. This leasing activity was almost entirely contained to the manufacturing and warehouse sectors. Overall vacancy rates were at 14.8 percent, which represents a 0.8 percentage point drop on a year-over-year (YOY) basis. Investors are keeping an eye on the market with an optimistic outlook for price appreciation, hoping for an upside swing as the lease rates start to ramp up.

Retail Snapshot
With continued slow construction activity and increasing absorption, the average retail vacancy rate in the Las Vegas market continued to drop in Q1 and, at quarter end, stood at 8.4 percent. Leasing activity for the overall retail market was 461,003 square feet, representing a 48.9% increase over 1Q 12. Although a positive trend has been seen over the past year with vacancies declining, uncertainty still remains as the market waits for stability to fully return.

About Cushman & Wakefield | Commerce
Cushman & Wakefield | Commerce, an independently owned and operated member of the Cushman & Wakefield Alliance, has been the leading provider of real estate brokerage services for more than 30 years. Headquartered in Salt Lake City, the firm has offices throughout Utah, Nevada, Idaho and Washington. It offers consulting, brokerage, tenant and landlord representation, property and facilities management, and valuation services to corporations, institutions and investors throughout the Intermountain West and Pacific Northwest. For more information, and for property listings, broker information, market category reports and more visit www.comre.com.

About Cushman & Wakefield
Cushman & Wakefield is the world's largest privately‐held commercial real estate services firm. The company advises and represents clients on all aspects of property occupancy and investment, and has established a preeminent position in the world's major markets, as evidenced by its frequent involvement in many of the most significant property leases, sales and assignments. Founded in 1917, it has 253 offices in 60 countries and nearly 15,000 employees. It offers a complete range of services for all property types, including leasing, sales and acquisitions, equity, debt and structured finance, corporate finance and investment banking, corporate services, property management, facilities management, project management, consulting and appraisal. The firm has more than $3.7 billion in assets under management globally. A recognized leader in local and global real estate research, the firm publishes its market information and studies online at www.cushmanwakefield.com/knowledge.