The commercial real estate market in Canada’s ‘Heart of the New West” remains bullish, according to a new report released by CBRE. The company recently released its 2014 Canadian Market Outlook, which states that, despite a slight slow-down in activity, the outlook remains positive.
According to Greg Kwong, the executive vice-president and regional managing director of CBRE in Calgary, much of the talk about the future has been squarely focused on construction in the downtown office core. He states that while that part of the market is important in Calgary, it does not reflect the whole market. There is strong demand for retail, industrial and suburban office space in the city at present.
Mr. Kwong went on to state that the current slowdown in the oil patch is having an impact on the commercial real estate market but that he expects the sector will bounce back. In the meantime, the economy in Alberta remains relatively strong and demand for commercial property is healthy overall.
The report continues to say that vacancy rates are low, with office vacancy rates sitting at 9.8 per cent and industrial vacancy rates at 7.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2013. Retail space in popular locations is in short supply and the current vacancy rate is still considered low indicating how tight the market is at the start of 2014.
Calgary is currently in the middle of a new downtown in the office construction cycle. A total of 6.3 million square feet is expected to come onto the market over the next few years.
