Honolulu, Hawaii/USA

The office vacancy rate for downtown Honolulu rose above 10 percent for the first time in five years, and the rate for all of Oahu rose by a half point to almost 9.2 percent during the first quarter of 2009, according to a new report.

The quarter also saw negative absorption for the seventh quarter in a row, although the 87,553 square feet vacated was less than the amount over the previous two quarters, according to the report by Colliers Monroe Friedlander.

The vacancy rate for the island, which stood at 8.6 percent at the end of 2008, rose to 9.16 percent by the end of March. The central business district, comprised mainly of downtown Honolulu, saw 49,455 square feet of negative absorption, which pushed the vacancy rate up to 10.4 percent, the second-highest submarket on the island after Waikiki, where the vacancy rate was 13.8 percent.

Average asking rents registered a slight decline during the quarter, at $1.69 per square foot, down from $1.70 per square foot at the end of 2008. Average operating expenses, however, rose by 4 cents to $1.18 per square foot, from $1.14 per square foot three months ago, a 3.5 percent increase.

About Colliers International

Colliers International is a global affiliation of independently owned commercial real estate firms. The organization's 10,092 employees span the world in 267 offices in 57 countries. On a worldwide basis, Colliers manages 672,945,918 square feet, and has revenue of $US 1,620,958,349.

Contact Information

For further information please contact Andrew D. Friedlander at 808.523.9797 or via email at andrew@colliershawaii.com or Mike Y. Hamasu at 808.523.9792 or via email at mike@colliershawaii.com.

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