By Donald Lydon, Avison Young Cleveland offers a mix of hurdles and opportunities across its industrial, office and multifamily sectors. With limited speculative construction, landlords are poised to leverage rental increases. Meanwhile, developers eyeing Cleveland should anticipate longer lead times for new projects, navigating through municipal regulations and land availability challenges. This nuanced landscape presents openings for savvy investors, developers and occupiers looking to capitalize on Cleveland’s evolving real estate dynamics. Resilient and mature, yet relatively untapped industrial market presents opportunities to national developers. Cleveland’s industrial sector is in a strong position relative to similar Midwest markets. With vacancy rates comfortably low at around 4 percent, rents are edging upward as developers struggle to find capital outlay nationally and spec development has all but stopped in most markets. The current landscape features a mix of large distribution hubs and older, yet prime, manufacturing facilities in key locations across Cleveland and Akron. Many facilities leased to third-party logistics companies seem to be stockpiling goods where others sit nearly empty, reflecting evolving needs in logistics and storage amid ongoing supply chain adjustments. This dynamic is leading to diverse demands: from small to mid-sized multi-tenant flex spaces (10,000 to 30,000 square feet) to …
