A Grubb and Ellis Co. Outlook ranked Orange County's office market at the best out of 60 U.S. office markets to invest in.

But Orange County continues to suffer from the 2007 subprime mortgage meltdown that caused a host of locally based lenders to shut down or move, increasing office vacancies just as an office building boom was winding down.

"Rents went up dramatically, and they're coming down dramatically," said Kurt Strasmann, Grubb's regional managing director in Orange County.

The Grubb outlook for Orange County states:

"The Orange County market will take at least 18 months before it starts to show signs of a meaningful and lasting turnaround characterized by positive net absorption.

"The local real estate industry's perception is that the Orange County office market is near the bottom and is not likely to get worse in the near future. However, it will take some time for tenants to gain confidence in the economy and begin to occupy additional space to the point where prices will increase and excess space will be absorbed."

The report states that with jobs shrinking, government and health will be among the few sectors needing additional office space. Hence, Washington, D.C., was ranked as the nation's top market for office investors.

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