New Jersey’s industrial market saw a strong fourth quarter, according to CBRE‘s Q4 industrial market report.
The market in the fourth quarter had 6.5 million square feet of leasing velocity and more than 4 million square feet of net absorption, CBRE said. The absorption put the annual net total at 11.6 million square feet, which was the highest annual net absorption recorded since 2001.
Total available space in the quarter fell from 56.9 million square feet to 54.3 million square feet, a decline of 30 basis points to 6.6 percent.
Overall vacancy in the quarter sat at 3.3 percent, a drop of 20 basis points year-over-year.
“The industrial market continued on a hot pace during the fourth quarter — a trend that we don’t see abating any time soon,” Thomas Monahan, vice chairman, CBRE, said. “New Jersey benefits not only from its prime location in the northeast corridor, but also from the ever-evolving market dynamics and business requirements by the e-commerce industry.”
The market in the fourth quarter added seven buildings totaling more than 2 million square feet, increasing base inventory to 825 million square feet, CBRE said.
The report said last year saw new completions at 10.3 million square feet with the year ending at 24 buildings under construction. The 24 buildings will add 7 million square feet to the market once complete.
Average asking rents had risen in each of the first three quarters of 2018, but the fourth quarter reversed, falling from $7.09 per-square-foot to $7.02 per-square-foot.
Notable deals in the quarter included Pioneer Commodities’ 544,518-square-foot lease renewal and expansion at 1665 Jersey Ave. in North Brunswick; Gucci’s 459,822-square-foot lease at 150 Totowa Road in Wayne; and Caravan Food Products’ 382,596-square-foot lease at 700 Union Blvd. in Totowa.
There were 43 investment sales in the fourth quarter, exactly matching the total recorded in the third quarter. CBRE said large properties were the most desired, with 24 of the sales representing buildings equal or more than 100,000 square feet.
To see the full report, click here.
