Retail Vacancy Rate in Central Jersey Falls

//March 15, 2006

An R.J. Brunelli survey finds retail vacancy rates in central N.J. fell to the lowest level in 10 years.The vacancy rate in central New Jersey’s four largest shopping corridors declined to 3.4% in 2005 from 4.1% in the prior year, hitting the lowest level in 10 years, according to R.J. Brunelli & Co., a retail real estate brokerage in Old Bridge.

Richard Brunelli, president of the brokerage, noted that Central Jersey’s improvement was especially notable given the bankruptcies of Treasure Island and Levitz Home Furnishings, which added some 230,000 sq. ft. of retail space to the regional market late last year and into 2006.

The firm’s annual study of the region found a total of 938,823 sq. ft. of vacant space out of the 27.38 million sq. ft. reviewed along state highways 1, 9, 18 and 35 in Mercer, Middlesex and Monmouth counties, plus a small section of Ocean County. In its 2004 study, the firm reported 1.05 million sq. ft. of available retail space out of 25.40 million sq. ft.

The 2005 study, conducted in January of this year, evaluated shopping centers and freestanding buildings of more than 2,000 sq. ft., including restaurants and auto-service facilities. All told, vacancies were found in 93 of the 507 properties reviewed. The report excludes regional malls under construction and major redevelopments.