Key Takeaways

• Wages are up 3.3% year-over-year and Atlanta’s unemployment rate remains at 4.3%.
• Leasing activity has slowed as asking rates reach the highest point in over 5 years due to a tighter market.
• The Atlanta vacancy rate has dropped to 7.2%, which is the lowest for the market in the last 10 years.
• Macroeconomic conditions in Atlanta continue to be positive with the unemployment rate down to 4.2% from 4.8% a year prior and the Atlanta consumer price index up 3.2% year-over-year. As of November the Atlanta economy had added 56,000 jobs over the last 12 months. This brought Atlanta’s employment figure to over 2.8 million people.

Atlanta Retail Market

The continued evolution of retail, which increasingly prioritizes selling services over products, is on further display this quarter with a frenzy of restaurant leases and openings in nontraditional retail space. Office landlords, condos, new mixed-use developments and even industrial landlords are all creating fine dining experiences. The following discussion may make you hungry...