Bogotá, Columbia
 

Bogotá and its Commercial Real Estate Market are unique in many respects. Did You Know...

•   Bogotá, with a population of 6.7 million people and a metropolitan population of about 8.1 million, is Colombia's capital and by far the largest and most populous city.

•   Bogotá is Colombia's largest economic center, with banking, insurance, finance, telecommunications, media, and the production of emeralds as its core industries. 

•   The majority of local and foreign companies in Colombia as well as the nation's main stock market are headquartered in Bogotá. The city is also home to the federal government, the national legislature, the Supreme Court of Justice, and the residence of the Colombian President.

•   For a long time, Bogotá was considered one of the most dangerous cities in Latin America, but nowadays its crime rate and image have changed drastically. Since 1995 the government has maintained participatory and integrated security policies in every municipality of Bogotá. As a result, the crime rate dropped around 71% and now Bogotá has a lower crime rate than cities such as Washington, D.C., Sao Paulo, and Mexico City.

•   The city has a modern transportation infrastructure that includes an international airport, bus lines, taxis, a train, and the TransMilenio rapid transit system.

•   Bogotá is the educational centre of Colombia. It has more schools, colleges, and universities than any other city in the country. These institutions play a key role in the local economy because they act as major sources of employment and because they prepare the working force of the region, which attracts national and international companies to the city and surrounding areas. 

•   The city accounts for nearly 50% of the real estate transactions done in the country. Construction in the residential market has seen the greatest volume, followed by the retail and office market. Demand for office space has increased in the past 2 years, but supply has been limited. The class A and class B office market in the CBD is comprised of only 5 million square feet. Approximately 500,000 square feet of class A office space will be deliver over the rest of 2007 and 2008. 

•   Due to the high level of available space in the industrial market, the vacancy rate in all submarkets remains high and the prices low. In the retail market, construction of new shopping centers is up, and the vacancy rate in downtown areas is increasing while in suburban areas is decreasing. Big and small retailers prefer to build or rent their facilities outside the CBD, which is demonstrated by the 95% occupancy rate in the suburban markets and the higher rental price .