As we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, TOK remains open for business and committed to meeting the commercial real estate needs of our clients and communities. Stay up to date on COVID-19’s impact on the commercial real estate sector.
The retail industry saw the largest impact from COVID-19, but in the Boise MSA that impact is still only minimal thus far.
Net absorption decreased in Q2 but still ended the quarter in positive territory (131,000 square feet), compared to negative absorption (-320,000 square feet) a year ago.
Even as the stock market posts record-setting gains, TOK Commercial’s most recent data points to impressive gains for both sales and leasing activity in commercial real estate markets across Idaho. While the trends are very encouraging, they also pose nuanced complexities that commercial real estate participants are grappling with.
Despite a worldwide pandemic, the Boise MSA’s office market has thus far experienced a milder impact than expected.
Net absorption ended Q2 at 243,000 square feet, a moderate decrease compared to 12 months ago (290,000 square feet), but still higher than the first half of both 2016 & 2017. Overall vacancy decreased from 5.8 percent at the end of 2019 to a current all-time low of 5.2 percent.
While the past few months have created major setbacks and challenges for most cities' economies, Idaho Falls has proven to have a recipe for economic stability despite the pandemic.
Although retail vacancy has seen a slight up-tick since Idaho’s economic shutdown, Total Vacancy (8.4%) in the Boise MSA is still lower than it was this time last year and Unanchored Vacancy (7.23%) is just slightly above the 20-year record low of 6.2% reached this March.
The coronavirus pandemic has impacted all aspects of life including how businesses operate. One question that keeps coming up is “How will office space be impacted?”
The Boise MSA has become a staple of national Best Places to Live lists lauding the area's many amenities - accessibility, affordability, safety and outdoor lifestyle. Recently, Livability wrote two articles related to Boise's appeal and offering their estimations of what the future might hold.
Even with our current economic state, the Boise industrial market remains strong with total number of deals up nearly 5% over the past 12 months.
The North submarket leads the way in industrial activity while Meridian has the highest gross absorption at 178,600 SF. This number is mostly attributed to Gensco occupying their new 68,000 SF space on Lanark.
Overall industrial vacancy has also remained stable at 3.5%, with multitenant vacancy currently at 7.0%.
The past month brought a glimmer of hope for Idaho retailers moving forward. May 1st marked the beginning of Idaho’s Stage 1 of reopening, with many non-essential retailers being allowed to open their doors for the first time in over a month. Stage 2 of reopening began May 16th – allowing for another wave of business owners to open –including dine-in restaurants, salons, and fitness centers. Stage 3 began last week, on May 30th, as most remaining retailers – such as bars and movie theaters – were able to open their doors. Although shopping, entertainment, and services may look different as retailers must still adhere to business protocols – the buzz of excitement is in the air.
Buoyed by positive employment news, TOK Commercial's June 5th data shows that Idaho commercial real estate activity is similarly showing optimistic signs of improvement as evidenced in declining rent relief requests; a gradual resurgence of newly leased space across sectors; and sale transactions spurred by value-add opportunities inherent in market conditions which are evolving, as parties react to changing market metrics. The Idaho Business Review also referenced TOK's "near-real time snapshot of Idaho CRE trends" in an
