Q2 2019 East Bay Market Report

The East Bay commercial real estate market had significant activity this quarter. San Francisco-based Credit Karma made a major decision to lease over 100,000 SF of space in Oakland, following mobile payment giant Square’s decision to prelease 100% of Oakland’s Uptown Station. The fifth largest transaction of the quarter was by Amazon’s Whole Foods, with the premium grocery store leasing nearly 40,000 SF of space in Emeryville. Oakland’s CBD experienced somewhat of an anomaly where vacancy rates and rental rates both increased, with the main reason being the withholding of large contiguous blocks, driving up competition for other spaces. The overall US economy is healthy, but not without market concerns: the Fed implemented a 0.25% rate cut, equity markets suffer from volatility, and trade concerns are increasing demand for the US 10Y and other safe-haven assets. Notwithstanding these concerns, GDP remains expansionary, unemployment remains low, and consumer confidence remains high.