Houston office market shows signs of recovery but new supply weighs down the numbers

With 460,000 square feet of new supply added to Houston’s office market in the fourth quarter of 2017, a boom in leasing still couldn’t tame the city’s vacancy rates. Free rent and other financial perks enticed companies to fill empty space, but the year ended with a 23.2 percent vacancy rate. A CBRE report found Houston “on relative solid footing” due to economic strength in Texas and nationally, but worries over stagnant energy industry hiring “could restrain any significant office sector leasing activity.” [Houston Chronicle]