Brokers looking for dramatic improvements in the Milwaukee office market this year will be disappointed. But those hoping for at least a modest increase in office activity in this Wisconsin city should be pleased.
According to the latest numbers from Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, the vacancy rate in the Milwaukee office sector should fall to 18.6 percent this year, a drop of 60 basis points from last year. Marcus & Millichap points to the small amount of new office construction in the Milwaukee area and an increase in leasing activity as the combination that should bring about this modest drop.
Asking rents should rise this year, too, though not by too much. Marcus & Millichap is predicting that asking rents for Milwaukee office space should rise 0.9 percent by the end of 2012 to $18.96 a square foot. Effective rents are expected to jump 1 percent this year to $14.12 a square foot.
This isn’t the booming recovery that Milwaukee’s office brokers are looking for. But at least the numbers are trending in the right direction. That’s about all you can ask for in today’s still-challenging office sector.
