Denver Office Activity and Deal Flow Likely Increasing in Q3

With the second quarter of 2021 in the rearview mirror, Avison Young’s research tells a story of an employment rate that is rebounding along with office leasing and sales. And easing into the third quarter, activity and deal flow are increasing, says Marcy H. Moneypenny, principal, managing director of Avison Young in Denver.

With 246,592 job losses between February and April 2020, reopening efforts and higher vaccination rates have allowed the Denver labor market to rebound from a 2020 unemployment high of 12.2 percent to 6.4 percent currently, a recovery of 83 percent of jobs lost at the height of the pandemic.

“Q2 2021 leasing activity increased by 60.2 percent compared with Q2 2020,” says Moneypenny.  “Asking rents are holding firm and the flight to quality trend persists as tenants seek an upgrade as they return to work. Office sales activity reached $420.1 million in Q2 2021 for the Denver market, surpassing sales activity from the last 12 months totaling $357.8 million.”