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JONI ASTRUP JOHN GESSNER LAURA ADELMANN
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DATE 3, ##, 2009 JUNE 2010
VOLUME 30, NUMBER # VOLUME 31, NUMBER 14
Dakota County Tribune Since 1884
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Indicators suggest commercial real estate has hit bottom by A.M. Vehling
Mark Hotzler’s assessment of the state of affairs in commercial real estate sounds like a description of pillows: the market for retail leases is soft, for office the softest and for industrial a bit sturdier. Hotzler’s firm, Metro Equity Management, commands nearly a million square feet of commercial real estate in Minnesota and Florida, a sizeable chunk of that here in the south metro, including several parcels in downtown Lakeville. Among Metro Equity properties there is a 10 to 12 percent vacancy rate, Hotzler said. That is below the nearly 21 percent across the south metro as a whole, according to NorthMarq’s semi-annual report released in January. Of his holdings, Hotzler said industrial space has held on the strongest. He said he is seeing increased activity in retail. On that note, he added, his downtown Lakeville holdings have minimal vacancies. Office space, on the other hand, is the slowest. The unforgiving economic conditions have resulted in scores of vacancies and rental rates slashed as much as 30 percent (see related story). In the Twin Cities market as a whole last year, 4.3 million square feet of space was subject to negative absorption (nearly 2 million of that was just office space), according to the NorthMarq report. To put this in perspective, the entire amount of commercial real estate in the south metro amounts to about 5 million square feet. “We’ve hit the bottom (in terms of vacancies),� said Dan Gleason, NorthMarq’s senior
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE
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by A.M. Vehling DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Photo by Rick Orndorf
vice president of sales and leasing. “Whether or not we bounce along the bottom is another thing.� Businesses are also downsizing, thus vacating a larger property in favor of another smaller, often already vacant property. This results in a flat absorption,
the report says. Hotzler is familiar with this, but what he sees in his own properties shows evidence of hope. “We’ve moved a few tenants around,� he said, “but it is mostly to accommodate other people
The commercial real estate market looks a bit like that of its residential counterpart: vacancies, foreclosures, bankruptcies and half-finished shells of dreams deferred. There is some positive news, though, for business owners looking to lease some space: It is definitely a tenants’ market. With the retail, office and industrial vacancy rate pushing 21 percent in the south metro, it is a “very competitive market,� said Dan Gleason, senior vice president of sales and leasing at NorthMarq, a commercial real estate services firm that compiles industry data. Space leased to the industrial sector has largely weathered the economic storm, according to the NorthMarq January 2010 semi-annual report, but the sheer availability of thousands of square feet of space has set the stage for slashed rates on more varieties of spaces in better locations, according to the report. In addition, landlords are offering concessions to fill vacanSee Tenants, Page 2A
Due to a push by the teachers’ union, legislators missed an opportunity to close the achievement gap in Minnesota. PHIL KRINKIE 4A FORUM
DANE SMITH
The term “Nanny State� has become a favorite term of governmentbashers, but there are advantages in having a nanny. 4A
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Using the right data when making decisions is essential to maintaining a healthy business and economy. JEFF APPELQUIST 5A BUSINESS 101
KATHY HUUS
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There are basically two approaches to contracting services when remodeling or building a new off ice space. 6A
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Vacancies, competitive market good for tenants
Mark Hotzler’s firm, Metro Equity Management, commands nearly a million square feet of commercial real estate in Minnesota and Florida.
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Primed for a rebound DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
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