Number of Auckland industrial vacancies drops

Industrial vacancy rates in Auckland are improving, according to the latest report from commercial property services firm Darroch.

Wednesday, August 15th 2012, 12:00AM

by The Landlord

The improvement in leasing activity started in June 2011 after two years of rising vacancies.

The former Manukau City industrial vacancy rate is down 0.9 percentage points in the last 12 months. In June 2012 vacancies were at 4.6%, down from 5.5% in June 2011. This decrease is due to a mixture of large tenancy movements. Darroch’s report cited PMP Print Ltd, which consolidated all of its operations into 18,500 square metres of industrial space at 44 Dalgety Drive, Wiri.

The former Auckland City industrial vacancy rate fell a marginal 0.1 percentage points from 4.6% in June 2011 to 4.5% in June 2012. It is the third consecutive year of decrease in vacancy since the June 2009 peak.

The North Shore City industrial vacancy rate had a drop of 1.7 percentage points over the past year. This is down from 9.0% in June 2011 to 7.3% in June 2012 as a result of slightly smaller tenancy movements contributing to the overall decrease in vacancy. This is the second consecutive year the leasing activity for this area has improved.

The Avondale/Rosebank Road precinct is smaller in comparison to the others. It had a significant increase of 1.6 percentage points from 2.0% in June 2011 to 3.6% in June 2012 due to numerous small tenancy movements.

Overall, the greater Auckland Region had a decrease of 0.6 percentage points over the past year. This is a decrease from 5.5% recorded in June 2011 to 4.9% in June 2012.

Darroch’s regional Director of valuations (Auckland), Mike Bristow, said the industrial market in the regional was buoyant.

“There has been a lot more development activity in the past 12 months compared to the two years after the 2008/2009 recession. We are seeing a lot more purpose-built industrial buildings coming through as developers are unlikely to build without tenant pre-commitment. A good example is the recently completed Super Cheap Auto premises at Savill Link in Otahuhu, it consists of more than 20,000 square metres of prime industrial space purpose built for them by Goodman.”

« Lifestyle blocks finding favour

Free Investment Property Showcase Events: Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch »

Special Offers