Industrial vacancy rates in the Atlanta area are at an all-time low reaching 2.7% at the end of June. Comparatively, the vacancy rate was 3.2% at the end of March.
Perhaps even more shocking is the limited number of locations available right now measuring 300,000 square feet or larger. According to Cushman & Wakefield market research, only seven vacancies existed greater than 300k sq ft at the end of the second quarter. Several of these spaces are already under contract for lease with move-in dates in the third quarter. None of these larger spaces are in McDonough or Locust Grove.
To meet demand, over 50 million new square feet of space is presently under construction within the Atlanta region. Of the 29.7 MSF scheduled to be complete before year-end, over one-third of it is already pre-leased.
Local Construction
The largest building under construction in Henry County right now is Gardner Logistics Park phase III off Colvin Drive. The future building measures 1 million square feet with an available expansion up to 1,454,520 sq ft. Several smaller buildings between 100,000–300,000 sq ft are concurrently in the works.
Further south, the Georgia 16 corridor off I-75 exit 205 is poised for explosive growth. MHF News is tracking over 30 million square feet of new space proposed off the roadway. The largest development, River Park, recently announced its first tenant: Proctor & Gamble. When complete, the River Park development will support up to 20 MSF of industrial space.
Port of Savannah
A major contributor to the demand for new space, the port of Savannah, shows no signs of slowing down. The port is continuously posting new records for the number of containers moved each month. In June, the port handled 494k container units. This number is up 10.6% from June a year ago. Savannah closed fiscal year 22 handling a total of 5.76 million twenty-foot equivalent container units.
Featured image shows an aerial photo of a McDonough distribution center. Photo credit JLL.
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