Columbia Regional Business Report
www.columbiabusinessreport.com
Staff Report 

Columbia’s commercial and industrial real estate markets posted mixed results for the third quarter of 2011.

The vacancy rate for Columbia’s industrial real estate market improved, while the office market took another hit, according to a report by NAI Avant.

The vacancy rate for the industrial space dropped to 10.7% due to a net absorption of 149,827 square feet of manufacturing and distribution space, the firm said. That compares with a vacancy rate of 11% at the end of the second quarter and 11.1% for the first quarter.

Key sales transactions for the quarter included Spirax Sarco’s acquisition of 35,800 square feet at 1101 Carolina Pines for $1.9 million. SC Liquidators’ move into a former 54,000-square-foot warehouse at 1215 Shop Road topped industrial leases.

Rental rates for industrial space jumped 4.3% to $4.08 per foot compared with $3.91 for the second quarter of 2011. Quoted rates for the flex sector averaged $8.36 per square foot, while warehouse rates averaged $3.78.

Regarding the Columbia office market, the vacancy rate climbed slightly during the third quarter to 9.3%, compared with 9.1% for the second quarter.

The agency reported that there were 56,000 more square feet of office space on the market compared to the second quarter, when 128,000 square feet was absorbed.

The average-quoted asking rental rate for all available office space was down 1.3% to $14.66 for the third quarter compared with $14.85 for the second quarter.

In the area’s submarkets, downtown Columbia had a vacancy rate of 10% for the quarter and average asking rental rate of $16.20 a square foot. Vacancy rates for other areas were 7.3% Cayce/West Columbia; 7.6% for Northeast Richland; 8.8% for Lexington; and 8.9% for Irmo/Dutch Fork.