Metro Vancouver industrial market report
Q1 2024
Metro Vancouver industrial market trends
Continued increase in vacancy, but still an unbalanced market
For the seventh consecutive quarter, the Metro Vancouver market posted an increase in vacancy, reaching 2.1% in Q1 2024, a 20 basis points (bps) rise quarter-over-quarter.Although the 2.1% vacancy rate may appear high compared to the low 0.3% rate recorded in Q2 2022, the market remains in the favourof landlords. Nonetheless, there are more options for tenants seeking space, providing them with greater variety to choose a facility that best meets their needs.
Anticipated interest rate cuts will increase strata demand
After six consecutive announcements of the overnight interest rate holding steady at 5.00%, it is anticipated that the upcoming Bank of Canada announcement will include a rate drop.While steadily rising rental rates have driven many tenants to invest in strata products over the past few years, high interest rates have made this more challenging in recent quarters. Some strata projects have not yet broken ground due to lower than expected pre-sales. However, with interest rates expected to decrease over the remainder of 2024, we anticipate a surge in demand for strata, particularly for premium products.
Rental rates continue to plateau after aggressive increases
During the pandemic, rental rates increased at a sharp pace. Throughout 2021 and 2022, the average quarter-over-quarter lease rate increase for net rents was 6.2%.Rental rates have stabilized over the last five quarters, showing a quarter-over-quarter average decrease of 0.2%. While lease rates may seem elevated, rents are still in line with other West Coast port markets. Tenants continue to evaluate their space needs and create efficiencies where possible, and flight-to-quality continues to be a prevailing trend.
Vacancy rate
0.3% sublease vacancy
Availability rate
up from 3.9% in Q4 2023
Average asking net rent per square foot (psf)
Square feet (sf) vacant
sf absorption
sf under construction
Your source for the latest Vancouver industrial market reports
Get in-depth industrial market reports and insights from commercial real estate experts in the Greater British Columbia area. Avison Young advisors look at Vancouver commercial real estate activities and the latest Vancouver statistics to provide you expert market research on Vancouver's industrial properties.
Explore different topics like the latest industrial market pricing trends and analysis of Vancouver's current industrial real estate market conditions. Gain a better understanding of Vancouver’s industrial real estate outlook and stay ahead of current industrial space trends. Make smart decisions when it comes to investing in industrial properties in Vancouver's competitive industrial real estate market. Avison Young is your trusted source for commercial real estate industrial market insights in Vancouver.
The dashboard was delivered through AVANT by Avison Young: leveraging real-time data and analytics to make cities and location-based decisions more transparent and efficient. Learn more about AVANT.