Demand Is Cutting Down on Vacancy of Office Space; Rents May Go Up : REAL ESTATE

There may be fewer good deals out there for renters of office space if the market continues to tighten, a local brokerage said.

With so much vacant office space in the county now, building owners are offering all kinds of concessions to get tenants in the door. But demand is beginning to cut down on the vacancies, said Dick Meyer, senior sales executive in Daum Commercial Industrial Real Estate’s Irvine office.

According to figures compiled by the consulting firm Newport Economics Group, the office vacancy rate dropped slightly last year, to 19.5% from 20.5% in 1987, even though 4 million square feet of new office space was built in 1988.

“Landlords are sensing a gradual tightening of available office space beginning to emerge,” Meyer said.

That means higher rents could be in the offing, he said.