CBRE: Houston office vacancy up since last year

​​​HOUSTON – CBRE’s first-quarter office report shows that the local office market has seen a sharp increase in vacancy because of the oil downturn, and the trends point to more vacancies for the ​rest of the year.

The citywide office vacancy rate hit 14.3 percent in the first quarter, up from 12.6 percent in first quarter 2015. 

Many energy firms leased additional office space to house employees during the boom times when oil was over $100 a barrel in 2014. But oil is now less than $40 a barrel, layoffs are widespread, and energy firms are putting excess office space up for sublease.

The office market’s availability rate, which includes sublease space, hit 18.3 percent in the first quarter, up from 15 percent from the same time last year.

The city recorded 215,000 sf of absorption​ in the first quarter. However, several new buildings are leased to companies that won’t occupy them for a while.

CBRE reports that 16 office projects totaling 5.8 million sf remain under construction. Taking this into account, CBRE forecasts an increase in vacancy to 15.2 percent this year.​