With the year half over, it’s time to take the pulse of office and industrial real estate.

Yes, there’s a pulse, but it’s growing a bit erratic.

Downtown Chicago’s market for office space looks healthy. According to the global real estate service firm UGL Equis Corp., 12.4 percent of downtown office space was vacant in the second quarter, slightly improved from the first quarter’s 12.7 percent.

However, looks can be deceiving.

“It’s important to point out that we saw close to a million square feet removed from (market) in the last two quarters from office building conversion into hotels,” said Todd Mintz, executive vice president of Chicago-based UGL Equis.

There is another disquieting fact.

Last year saw 3-million-square-feet of office space taken under lease. So far this year, the figure is just 300,000 square feet.

Mintz has reservations about the suburban office market as well. Vacancies are typically higher in the suburbs than downtown. The collapse of the subprime mortgage market threw 800,000-square-feet of office space onto the market in the north and west suburbs, he said.

The uncertainty for those in the mortgage industry has infected banks in general, and Mintz sees a problem there.

“We expect both downtown and suburban markets to be affected by the banking industry,” he said, as banks close facilities.

How about industrial space. Haven’t all the factories moved to China, or at least Mississippi.

Actually, no, according to people in the industry.

John Abuja, vice president investments at Marcus & Millichap, said technologically sophisticated manufacturing, the kind reliant on engineers and highly skilled workers, are locating in Chicago because their workers are seeking an urban environment.

“The median price of city properties has climbed about 20 percent” in the last year,Abuja said.

Another real estate services company sees the situation much the same way.

“The city of Chicago, fueled by Mayor Richard M. Daley’s campaign to keep manufacturing jobs in the city, began to witness an increase in companies remaining in Chicago as well as attracting new tenants,” Cushman & Wakefield said. This, the company said, was “an unexpected trend.”

Two recent deals were notable.

The report cited Assemblers Inc., a packaging and warehouse company, signed the largest industrial lease since 2005 when it signed up for a 452,000-square-foot facility. Meanwhile steelmaker Finkl & Sons Co. announced plans to remain in Chicago when they move next year from their plant on Goose Island. Both companies are locating on the South Side.

Against that backdrop, Cushman & Wakefield say an excess of new supply is on its way, and industrial properties will suffer.

“Landlords may be forced to decrease rents,” the company said.

So let’s order mojitos and shoot some pool: A new hotel opens near O’Hare International Airport this week. It’s name is aloft, and yes, the hotel spells its name with a lower case “a,” just as the recently opened “dana” hotel spells its name with a lower case “d.”

The 251-room aloft is intended to be a less expensive version of W Hotels, spokeswoman Lisa Kornblatt said. But it is also intended to attract people who like people.

That’s the reason for the prominent bar and pool tables in the lobby. The layout is intended to encourage people to socialize at the hotel at 9700 Balmoral Ave.