Brisbane, Australia
 

Brisbane and its Commercial Real Estate Market are unique in may respects. Did You Know...

•   Brisbane is the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland and the third latest city in the country. The city is located in the central area of eastern Australia, adjacent to the Brisbane River and Moreton Bay. The city was named in honor to Sir Thomas Brisbane, who was governor of New South Wales in the 1820's. In the past two decades Brisbane has been one of Australia's fastest growing cities, attracting an average of 55,000 new residents per year. The city has a median age of 32 years old and a density of 1089 people per square mile.

•   Brisbane is one of the major business centers in Australia. The local and national economy is currently strengthening, and it is expected to continue growing at a good rate in the  long-term. The national employer optimism is presently at its highest level in seven years, the government has plans to improve its infrastructure in order to accommodate Brisbane's projected growth and development, and the overall business secotr is expanding in all of its areas. 

•   Industry in the city tends to split between white-collar industries (information technolody and financial services), which tend to be located in the CBD, and blue-collar industries (petroleum refining and paper milling), normally found in the lower edges of the Brisbane.

•   Brisbane has an extensive transportation network, with connections to all areas of the city and the rest of the country. The city is served by the Brisbane Airport and the Port of Brisbane, which are Autralia's third most active airport and port respectively.

•   The last two years have witnessed a drastic expansion of Brisbane's commercial real estate market. Investment activity in all sectors of the market continues to be strong, with over $600 million transacted during the past twelve months. Demand for office space in the last 12 months has been stronger than usual, and this has led to historically low vacancy rates and an increase in rental rates. The overall office vacancy rate ranges from 0.3% to 2.9%, and in some districts rents have increased by as much as 25%.

•   The CBD had a net absorption of more than 280,000 sq. ft. in the first half of the year, while the overall absorption in the Fringe market totaled 455,561 sq. ft. In the next 2 years, approximately 2.3 million sq. ft. are expected to be completed in the CBD, and about 3.6 million sq. ft. will be added to the Fringe market. With low vacancy levels in the CBD and the Fringe market, and with a great percentage of new space already pre-committed, the office market is expected to remain tight for at least two more years. The industrial market is also performing well, with high expansion in all of its areas, and it is expected to continue strong.