Vancouver’s office real estate market is poised for change in 2024 due to potential adjustments in interest rates, global economic shifts and ongoing regional challenges, says a new NAI Commercial report.

“These factors will continue to shape the commercial real estate market and its prospects in the coming year,” states the report.

During the fourth quarter of 2023, downtown Vancouver office availability rose to 16.1% from 14.4% in the same period in 2023, said NAI. Downtown class A availability rose to 15.43% to 14.3%.

“This figures support the theory and reality of a shift toward higher-quality properties,” states the report.

The addition of class A inventory indicates that the asset category has stabilized, according to the firm. Altogether, 194 spaces comprising 819,758 square feet were added during the quarter, while nine spaces totalling 494,050 sf were removed, resulting in modest positive positive absorption of 76,532 sf.

Altus Group recently reported that Vancouver posted the lowest office availability rate in Canada (12.2%) during the fourth quarter of 2023.