On Tuesday the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released statistics showing a northerly thrust for commercial markets, as job growth and brightening spots in the U.S. economy contributed to a growing level of confidence.

The association predicted that office vacancy rates will decline from the second quarter this year to the same period in 2012, with corresponding 0.9 point and 0.5 point drops in the industrial real estate and retail sectors, respectively.

Statistics pointed to a 1.1 percentage drop in the multifamily rental market, according to Mortgage Professional Magazine.

“Job growth creates demand for commercial space, and the economy should be adding between 1.5 million and two million jobs annually both this year and in 2012, with the unemployment rate falling to 8.0 percent by the end of next year,” the magazine reported Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, as saying. “Given the minimal new supply in recent years, the rising demand means vacancy rates will be trending down in the commercial real estate sectors. Individual markets are now stabilizing and in some cases rising.”

Surveying over 360 local market experts, the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors released a Commercial Real Estate Index that showed the northeastern and southern regions propelling market improvements, with a 6.8 percentage rise to 57.6 points in the first quarter, according to Mortgage Professional Magazine.

“Just as in the residential sector, lending problems are the biggest issue impacting commercial real estate,” Yun said. “Solid rises in apartment rents will force some renters to consider homeownership.”

NAR is a research and policy organization for realtors nationwide.