Detroit gets plenty of bad press. And with the city declaring bankruptcy last year, that bed press has only grown. But there is a surprising amount of good news right now in this key Midwest city, something that the recent metropolitan Detroit office report from Friedman Integrated Real Estate Services proves.
According to the report, which looks at 2013 office activity in Detroit and its surrounding communities, the occupancy rate in this office market rose to 81.2 percent by the end of 2013. That’s up a bit from an occupancy rate of 80.5 percent at the end of 2012.
Friedman reported that total investment office sales in the Detroit market rose to an impressive $300 million at the end of 2013. That, as Friedman reports, is much higher than anything the city has seen since 2007.
The market also saw positive net absorption of more than 1 million square feet in 2013. The combined total absorption in 2012 and 2013 represented the best two-year period for the market since 2004, Friedman reports.
What’s behind this good news? Friedman reports that the automotive industry is attracting foreign investors. Foreign investors have invested $1 billion in the state of Michigan, Friedman says.
