The continued proliferation of e-commerce remains a boon for the industrial sector. In all, North American industrial absorption is forecast to register 495 million sq. ft. in 2019 and 2020, with 550 million sq. ft. of new product delivered by year-end 2020. IN addition, vacancies will remain at around 5 percent and average asking rents will rise from $6.24 per sq. ft. all the way to $6.68 per sq. ft. by the end of 2010.
Those were some of the conclusions in Cushman & Wakefield's recently released 2019 North American Industrial Outlook, which line up with the sentiment expressed in NREI's recent industrial research study.
According to the firm, "Market conditions will encourage development in port-proximate markets, intermodal hubs, and inland population centers but supply will not overwhelm demand."
In addition, "The greatest uptick in North American leasing activity in 2019-2020 will be in the 10,000-to-100,000 and the 300,000-to-500,000 sq. ft. segments. Leasing activity in the 10,000-100,000 sq. ft. range peaked in 2013 with many tenants
signing leases that will rollover in 2019 and 2020. Although leasing in this size range has remained well above pre-recession levels, lease expirations will boost activity in the next two years."
Using data from the report, here are a look at the industrial markets currently boasting the lowest vacancy rates as of C&W's preliminary numbers for the fourth quarter of 2018. Data in the slides also includes information on net absorption, leasing activity, vacancy rates, asking rents, total inventory, deliveries in 2018 and the total amount of space under construction as of the fourth quarter.