Midtown South emptying out

Midtown South, from Houston to 42nd streets, has some of the city’s cheapest office space, but it’s slowly emptying out. Average vacancy in the area rose to 7.1 percent in September from 5.6 percent in September 2007, more than the annual rate of increase for all of Manhattan, according to CB Richard Ellis. The average asking rental price in Midtown South was $52.86 per square foot in September, compared to $84.74 in Midtown.