Office Leases Slump Throughout Summer

The local office-leasing market continued to slump through the summer, according to a recently released study.

During July and August, the amount of newly leased office space in the San Fernando Valley plunged 58% from the previous two-month period, according to the commercial real estate brokerage Julien J. Studley Inc. A total of 319,205 square feet of office space was newly leased during the latest two months, compared to 757,453 square feet leased in May and June, Studley said.

The July-August figures also were down 43% from the square footage leased in the same period a year earlier, according to the study. The decline left new leasing activity from January through August 35% behind the first eight months of 1990.

Studley noted that the drop in office leasing activity in the latest period was particularly sharp in the West Valley, where the total square footage leased plummeted 69% from the previous two months. The report cited high rental rates and uncertainty over future development in Warner Center as the chief factors in deterring potential tenants.