Despite weak leasing activity, investors bullish on Miami office market: report

Despite an office leasing environment that continues to favor tenants, investors are betting the Miami office market will recover soon as sales in the sector spiked.

According to a second quarter market report issued today by commercial brokerage CB Richard Ellis, vacancy rates rose four percentage points to 18.3 percent in the second quarter of 2011 compared to the prior year quarter. As a result, average asking rents declined by $0.48 to $30.03 over the same period.

Moreover, 832,000 square feet of office space is slated to hit the market by the end of the year, including 600 Brickell Avenue at Brickell World Plaza, 801 Brickell Avenue and 396 Alhambra Circle.

Nevertheless, more than 2.4 million square feet of office space sold in the second quarter at an average of $290 per square foot. In the first half of the year, total transaction volume was $493 million, surpassing 2010’s total. [FREJ]