Austin Retail Space Highly Constrained According to Weitzman Group

Retail occupancy throughout Texas’ capital city of Austin is 96%, meaning almost full. Additionally, construction is down. According to a report from the Weitzman Group, 700,000 square feet will be delivered this year, a 22% drop from last year. Austin’s suburban submarkets are also seeing strong retail occupancy, due to backfilling of long-vacant spaces.

The average rent for Class A retail space in prime locations is more than $30 per square foot. Newer construction projects are commanding rates of $40 per square foot and higher.

According to the Weitzman Group, retailers have been getting creative with retail space in the face of supply lack. For example, Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th opened earlier this year in 50,000 square feet that used to belong to a furniture store in the Gateway Shopping Center.

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