State government, as it shrinks, has been exercising its right to terminate private sector leases to move to state-owned facilities. “Now more than ever, investors, lenders, everyone’s more concerned about that exit capability by the state,” says Lewis Buford, vice president of Tallahassee Land Co. “There is a much higher risk associated with the government.”

Retail looks promising with several national retailers looking in the market, offsetting companies that closed. Some 1,500 apartment units, primarily student housing, are in the works, raising flutters of concern about a bubble.

Chip Hartung, broker/owner of Coldwell Banker Hartung and Noblin, says the market has improved this year. “Overall, Leon County has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the state (7.6%). It definitely hasn’t been the Armageddon a lot of people expected when Rick Scott got elected,” Hartung says.