Commercial Real Estate and Mortgage In Washington
Article Summary: This article will help anyone looking for information pertaining to a commercial real estate and commercial lending in the State of Washington.
For those looking to purchase or lease commercial real estate in in
Washington and the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan area, there
is much to be had, but at a premium. Half of the state's population is located
in this corridor, and many large businesses make their home here. The area has
an established business sector with major Fortune 500 companies such as Amazon
and Starbucks choosing Seattle as their headquarters. One of the draws for major
companies to make Washington their home is the tax policies that are favorable
to business. Washington levies no personal income tax on its residents. It also
charges no corporate income tax, making it very profitable for big business
to settle there.
The economy in this area is booming, with both employment and wages increasing
in this already wealthy, low-unemployment area. The escalating wages and home
prices are expected to combine to stimulate demand for apartment and condo units
in Seattle. The already low vacancy rates are expected to drop even further,
pushing up already high rents. Developers are jumping in the market with new
construction apartments, but the new vacancies are not expected to dampen rents.
The robust economic growth is also driving up retail markets in Seattle, and
the city has been listed as the top location for retail investment
and growth. As big box retailers move into the metro areas, new development
is expected to increase, and much of it will pre-leased. Additionally, there
is little fear of overbuilding in the retail sector as the cost of land in the
area is prohibitively high. Even so, developers are expected to add over 1.2
million square feet of retail space, a 900,000 square foot increase of the past
year. The redevelopment market is hot too, particularly for underused properties
in the heart of Seattle.
The office space market was at a standstill through 2004 and parts of 2005,
but it started making a recovery in 2006 and is expected to be strong throughout
2007 and 2008. Here the market is driven not so much by occupants - indeed occupancy
rates are slightly high - but instead by institutional investors who are betting
that Seattle's long-term economic forecast will carry them through times of
low-occupancy. At this time, given that market is driven by investors not demand,
not much new office space is coming online.
Industries that do well throughout the state are electronics, biotechnology,
aluminum production, mining, tourism, and computer software. Microsoft makes
it home in Washington and has brought millions of dollars of revenue into the
state.
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