There's more bad news for industrial investors and developers: vacancy rates in some markets are still growing. In Raleigh, N.C., for example, vacancy rates grew 130 basis points to 23.5% between the third quarter of 2002 and the third quarter of 2003.

Markets Posting Record High Industrial Vacancy Rates

	3Q 2003	3Q 2002	Basis Point Change
Raleigh, N.C.	23.5%	22.2%	130
Austin, Texas	19.7%	19.1%	60
San Jose	18.1%	14.8%	330
Stamford, Conn.	16.9%	13.8%	310
Atlanta	16.0%	15.3%	70
Detroit	15.6%	12.3%	330
Charlotte, N.C.	15.1%	13.3%	180
Sacramento	14.8%	13.6%	120
Source: Torto Wheaton Research

As of the second quarter of 2003, the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions led the country in sales of single-tenant, net-lease office properties. The Southeast and the West experienced the highest volume of industrial net-lease transactions.

The warehouse club/supercenter concept embraced by retailers such as Wal-Mart and Costco has become consumers' dominant source for general merchandise over the past decade, at the expense of conventional department stores, such as Macy's.

Hotel buyers in search of bargains should look to North Central cities such as Chicago, Detroit and Minneapolis for attractive prices. The region averaged $42,545 per room, the lowest of any region, in the first half of 2003.

Hotel Real Estate Sales First Half 2003 Vs. First Half 2002

First Half 2003
		Average
	Number of	Number	Average Sale
	Transactions	of Rooms	Price Per Room
New England and Middle Atlantic	8	54	$78,598
Mountain and Pacific	137	60	$60,774
South Central	18	139	$57,233
South Atlantic	58	77	$56,220
North Central	27	117	$42,545
First Half 2002
		Average
	Number of	Number	Average Sale
	Transactions	of Rooms	Price Per Room
New England and Middle Atlantic	46	137	$128,637
Mountain and Pacific	150	85	$57,628
South Atlantic	115	81	$48,284
North Central	65	85	$26,103
South Central	41	108	$24,458
Source: The Hospitality Research Group, CoStar, Hotel Brokers Association

Although the number of apartment units for rent in New York City actually declined by 21,000 over the last decade, the market's total apartment count still leads the nation by nearly 1 million units. The reduction in the number of units can be attributed in large part to relatively low population growth in older metropolitan areas.

Rental Housing Stock Estimates

	Rental Apartment Units		Difference
Metro Area	1990	2000	1990-2000
1.New York	1.91 million	1.89 million	-21,052
2. Los Angeles	896,542	931,222	34,680
3. Chicago	606,642	616,690	10,048
4. Washington, D.C.	424,676	445,660	20,984
5. Houston	397,062	416,690	19,628
6. Dallas	345,538	377,226	31,688
7. Atlanta	276,542	323,320	46,778
8. San Diego	275,618	286,050	10,432
9. Detroit	281,760	255,267	-26,493
10. Miami	242,680	255,195	12,515
Source: Bob Sheehan, consulting economist to the National Apartment Association from U.S. Bureau of Census data.

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