Orange County Forecast Sees Less Office Demand

Demand for office space in Orange County will drop for the rest of this year and into the first quarter of 1989, says Matthew Disston, principal of Research Network, a Laguna Hills real estate research firm.

“The vacancy rate is now more than 20%, and the average lease rate has stagnated for the past 18 months at about $1.76 a square foot. Absorption of new office space may drop by as much as 50% the second half of the year compared to the first half.”

He gives three reasons:

1--Tenants will tend to sit tight until the general election is over.

2--There continues to be uncertainty over the economy.

3--Office developers have generally been successful in leasing office space and are getting tougher in negotiating deals with tenants.

“It’s not a buyer’s market and it’s not a seller’s market. It’s a broker’s market,” Disston says.