According to Colliers’ Q2 2012 Metro Vancouver Office Market Report, the Metro Vancouver office market maintained its stability once again this quarter, with the
vacancy rate decreasing minimally from 7.7 percent last quarter to 7.6 percent this quarter.

Q2 highlights:

• The Metro Vancouver vacancy rate decreased minimally from 7.7 percent in Q1 2012 to 7.6 percent in Q2 2012
• The Downtown Vancouver vacancy rate decreased to 3.5 percent this quarter, down from 3.8 percent last quarter
• Investment activity Downtown was reasonably strong, with the sale of Bentall V and several significant firms deals in place
• The Suburban vacancy rate remained unchanged from last quarter at 11.2 percent and the market as a whole was relatively slow
• Broadway Tech Centre Building 6 commenced construction this quarter after it was revealed that Golder Associates preleased approximately 130,000 square feet

David Taylor and Simon Lim of Colliers International have acted on behalf of the Vendor in the sale of 5970 East Boulevard, a 9,600 sq ft office and apartment building located in the prestigious Kerrisdale are of Vancouver. The property is zoned C-2 and was fully leased at the time of sale. The purchase price was $3,500,000, representing $347 per sq ft.

The City of Vancouver is holding an open house for 320 Granville Street, a proposed 32-storey office building with a density of 25.5 FSR and 380,000 sq. ft.

The Open House will be a “drop-in” event where you can view the proposal. City staff and the applicant team will be available to answer your questions and receive your comments.

Community Open House
Date: Thursday, July 12, 2012
Time: 5 – 8 pm
Place: The Landing (atrium)
375 Water Street

108 & 116 East Broadway, two retail buildings located on the South side of Broadway near Main Street, have sold for a combined $4,900,000, representing a cap rate of approximately 3.0%. The properties are zoned C-3A, and have a site area totaling 9,520 SF, equating to a price per buildable sq ft of $157.00.

The buildings are currently occupied by a thrift store and a mattress store. The purchaser was a local private investor. The property had been listed with Cushman Wakefield.

A local Vancouver investment group has purchased the Acme Labs property at 828 – 868 East Hastings Street.  Zoned M-1, the property was purchased for $7,250,000 and is 33,541 square feet in size with 275 feet of frontage on East Hastings Street.