CBD Office Vacancy Holds Steady
Downtown office absorption rates remained strong in July, according to the latest MB Real Estate Index. The index, which looks at the direct vacancy rates of the 30 newest Class-A offices greater than 300k SF in the CBD, is an indicator of the overall state of the Chicago office market.
Vacancy rates in the CBD dipped incrementally to 13.49%, from 13.55% in June. The past three months have seen a rash of new leases as the trend of companies relocating from the suburbs to downtown continues. The most recent announcement was Motorola Solutions' decision to move from Schaumburg to 500 W Monroe. The American Marketing Association is entering the submarket with 22k SF at 130 E Randolph.
But the influx is balanced by firms consolidating office space. Deloitte is returning a sizable portion of office space at 111 S Wacker. Baxalta is moving into 80k SF over two floors at 540 W Madison.
