VENTURA COUNTY: Brokers Brace for Amgen, Countrywide Fallout

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Ventura County’s office market held steady in the third quarter, but headline-grabbing job cuts don’t bode well for the future.


Biotech giant Amgen Inc. announced 675 layoffs at its Thousand Oaks location, and leading mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. cut 12,000 employees nationally, though it’s unclear how many were local.


The job losses came late in September so the layoffs didn’t impact third quarter data. The overall office vacancy rate remained essentially unchanged, dipping to 10.3 percent in the third quarter from 10.6 percent in the second, according to figures from CB Richard Ellis Group Inc.


Most of the third quarter lease activity involved transactions of less than 20,000 square feet. This is mostly because there are few large blocks of space on the market. However, 1.1 million square feet of office space is slated to come online in the next 12 to 18 months.


That might worry some, but Tom Dwyer, senior vice president of CB Richard Ellis’s office properties group, expects it to be absorbed easily despite the layoffs. “In the fourth quarter, we anticipate two large lease transactions will be executed in buildings under construction. That will enforce the strong demand for quality buildings in the market,” he said.


Year-to-date net absorption was 123,067 square feet, up slightly from mid-year at 112,105 square feet. Still, while it’s too early to gauge the impact of job cuts on the local office inventory, many in Ventura County are waiting for the fallout.


“In the event of another wave of significant layoffs, there will be downward pressure in the real estate market with more space coming online in the form of subleases,” said John DeGrinis, senior vice president of Colliers International’s Encino office. Thousand Oaks, Camarillo and Newbury Park are expected to feel the pinch first. Adding insult to injury, the gross county product is forecast to grow only 1.4 percent this year, and 1.0 percent in 2008.


“If users regain confidence in expanding, growing and relocating, the end of the year will have a much stronger finish,” DeGrinis predicted. “However, relocating is a costly endeavor for users and without confidence the economic climate, they will remain inactive.”


– Mercury Insurance Group leased 29,954 square feet at 5300 Adolfo Road, Camarillo, in a five-year deal. Terms were undisclosed.


– Ahern Rentals Inc. purchased the 15,000-square-foot building at 821 N. Rice Ave. in Oxnard from Staben Equipment Co. Inc. for $3.2 million.


– Olson 737-Ventura 4 LLC bought 3.6 acres in Ventura from the Ventura Unified School District for $10.5 million for a proposed mixed-use project.


– Panattoni Development Co. acquired the 49,000-square-foot industrial building at 2101 Corporate Center Drive, Thousand Oaks, for $7.2 million from the Wood Family Trust. The new owner plans to convert it to office space.


– Kennedy Wilson picked up the 354,341-square-foot Oaks at Westlake, One Baxter Way, from Tishman Speyer for $131 million. Tishman Speyer paid $92.5 million one year ago and made extensive renovations. The property was 79 percent leased at sale, with former building owner Baxter Healthcare leasing back 200,000 square feet.


– Selleck Development Group purchased 889 Mitchell Road, Newbury Park, for approximately $5 million from an undisclosed buyer. Selleck will renovate the showroom/office property.


– Opus West may expand its planned $150-million office park in Camarillo. The company is considering the addition of a fitness center, shops and cafes to service the project and the greater Westlake North Specific Plan Area.



Margot Carmichael Lester

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