Class A office space vacancies in downtown Milwaukee and the suburbs dropped during the first quarter, according to a report by Boston-based Colliers International.
The downtown Milwaukee class A office space vacancy rate fell from 12.8 percent to 12.1 percent during the quarter. Nationally, the downtown class A office space vacancy rate is 10.4 percent, according to the report. The city with the highest downtown class A office space vacancy rate is Memphis at 23.4 percent.
Milwaukee’s suburban class A office space vacancy rate fell from 16.0 percent to 12.9 percent during the first quarter. The national suburban class A office space vacancy rate is 12.1 percent, according to the report. Westchester County, N.Y. has the highest class A suburban office space vacancy rate at 20.8 percent.
The Colliers report demonstrates that downtown Milwaukee’s office market remains soft, despite the decline in the class A vacancy rate. The total downtown Milwaukee office space vacancy rate increased during the first quarter, from 14.1 percent to 15.2 percent. The national total downtown office space vacancy rate is 11.7 percent, according to the report. Kansas City, Mo. has the highest total downtown office space vacancy rate, at 23.2 percent.
However, Milwaukee’s total suburban office space vacancy rate improved from 12.0 percent to 11.2 percent and is below the national average of 13.0 percent, according to the Colliers report.