Thursday, May 14, 2026
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Midwest Market Reports

Market ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsNebraskaRetail

New Development, Backfill Activity Fuel Omaha Retail Market Momentum 

by Kristin Harlow

By Mandi Backhaus-Barr, The Lerner Company As they say, when one door closes, another one opens, and the same is true in commercial real estate. In 2025, the Omaha market experienced a plethora of activity, from store closures to quick backfills, and numerous new developments either announced, commenced or completed. Omaha’s market continues to demonstrate strong momentum, showing little sign of slowing down.  This strength was reinforced when the metro-area population recently surpassed the 1 million mark, a milestone that appears to carry more weight with retailers than slightly lower population figures. As a result, the market has responded positively, with year-over-year asking rents increasing by 5.4 percent. Despite rapid growth and development across the city, Omaha’s core market fundamentals remain solid.  From a retail standpoint, we are seeing retailers continue to test new formats and refine their store footprints, while a recent wave of international brands has begun entering the U.S. market, signaling a new level of global interest and underscoring the growing appeal of well-positioned retail environments.  Additionally, the consumer is still spending, just differently. Beauty, footwear and apparel are categories with strong momentum. The trend of mid-tier retailers being squeezed into an increasingly polarized market, where value-focused …

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Market ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsMixed-UseNebraska

How Is Music Helping Midwest Cities Find Their Rhythm?

by Kristin Harlow

By Leirion Gaylor Baird, Mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska All roads lead to Lincoln. Located midway between Chicago and Denver, our capital city has long served as a crossroads for touring legends, local artists and fans who pack historic music venues night after night. Our live music scene has grown organically in bars, theaters and alleyways, becoming a defining part of our civic DNA. Now, Lincoln is intentionally amplifying this authentic strength and sound. Through the creation of the Boehmer Street music district, the City of Lincoln, in partnership with the Downtown Lincoln Association and with support from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, is investing in assets that define our unique cultural landscape. This effort advances a longstanding plan to designate a music district as a downtown catalyst.  Our vision is to convert underutilized downtown space into active, mixed-use momentum that grows economic opportunity, strengthens quality of life and brings renewed vitality to our urban core. Anchor culture, community The Boehmer Street music district links three major geographic anchors — the University of Nebraska–Lincoln campus, the State Capitol and our iconic main street — to form a walkable corridor. Longstanding, thriving music venues, including the Zoo Bar, The Bourbon Theatre, …

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IndustrialMarket ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsOhio

Columbus Industrial Market Accelerates Amid Mega-Projects, Strategic Growth

by Kristin Harlow

By Derek Lichtfuss, Newmark Columbus, Ohio, is emerging as one of the nation’s most dynamic industrial markets. With a strategic location, robust infrastructure and a diversified economy, the metro area is attracting industrial, manufacturing and logistics investment at a pace rivaling traditional coastal hubs.  According to Newmark Research, Columbus’ industrial market closed 2025 with positive absorption of 8.8 million square feet — ranking among the top five U.S. markets. Remarkably, the fourth quarter alone contributed more than 3 million square feet, marking the second consecutive quarter above that threshold. The market’s fundamentals underscore its strength. Vacancy ended the year at 7.2 percent, down from 9.7 percent in 2024. Asking rents, while largely flat in 2025, have climbed for six consecutive years, reflecting steady demand. More than 5.2 million square feet are currently under construction, signaling developer confidence. Drivers of growth Several factors drive the city’s momentum. Columbus benefits from an exceptional logistics profile. The metro area can reach roughly 50 percent of the U.S. population within a one-day drive or train, bolstered by I-70, I-71 and the second-largest inland port at Rickenbacker International Airport. Its multimodal capabilities — including Norfolk Southern rail and cargo air — have made it a …

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Market ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsMinnesotaOffice

In 2026, Twin Cities Office Market Is Sorting

by Kristin Harlow

By Anders Pesavento, Cushman & Wakefield If you have ever been to a pro sports game or a concert and felt that collective buzz, you know exactly what I mean — it is electric. The kind of energy that makes you look around and think, right, this is why we do this. I felt it first-hand when the Cross Country Skiing World Cup came to Minneapolis in 2024, and more than 30,000 people packed into one place to cheer on the athletes. That day was a reminder you cannot replicate with a livestream or a group chat: humans feed off other humans. The office market is tapping into that same instinct, just in a quieter way. That is why the conversation has moved from whether office matters to which offices matter. It is not a blanket comeback. It is a sorting. We are not rewinding to 2019. Companies are using spaces differently and choosing buildings that help them recruit and retain talent. Hybrid schedules are real, but so is the need for culture, onboarding and collaboration that works best face-to-face. That shift makes “vacancy” a blunt instrument. Real vacancy is the space that is truly available in buildings that can …

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IndustrialMarket ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsMinnesotaOfficeRetail

Different Opportunities: Minneapolis, St. Paul and the Suburbs

by Kristin Harlow

By Jesse Tollison, Transwestern When analyzing the Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) metro area, urbanicity plays a deep role in understanding the opportunities for making a significant impact and profit in the commercial real estate markets. This is not a story unique to Minnesota’s largest metropolitan area, where roughly half of the state’s inhabitants live, but MSP serves as an illuminating case study as to how widely opportunity can vary between urban and suburban markets.  Indeed, many areas across the country exhibit stark differences between their urban and suburban commercial real estate markets, but those differences cannot be uniformly applied to each metro. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of local minutiae lends tremendous insight when evaluating opportunities.  Developers, investors, tenants, brokers and every other player in the commercial real estate world are paying close attention to the diverging urban and suburban trends as they assess the market for opportunities. In such a fragmented market, decision-makers are using more data than ever to inform their strategies. High-level views aren’t enough to benchmark a property’s performance, and it’s important to understand the localized trends when evaluating an opportunity.  Industrial history As the historical industrial hub of Minnesota, the Twin Cities’ urban core has many …

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IllinoisMarket ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsOffice

Three Narratives Shaping Next Chapter of Chicago’s Office Market

by Kristin Harlow

By Denes Juhasz, NAI Hiffman Two different star performers are emerging in Chicago’s suburban and downtown office markets. Practical Class B properties are gaining traction in the suburbs, while glitzy Class A+ trophy towers continue to outperform downtown. As the office sector adapts to post-pandemic workplace realities, the 278 million-square-foot metro Chicago office market ended 2025 with a 25.5 percent overall vacancy rate and 1.8 million square feet of negative net absorption.  The suburban market closed 2025 with positive net absorption totaling 282,285 square feet, while overall vacancy held steady at 26.2 percent, largely consistent with the year-end 2024 level of 26.3 percent. Downtown, tenant space reductions and relocations continued to take a toll, with nearly 2.1 million square feet of negative net absorption recorded in 2025. Vacancy rose to 24.9 percent, up from 23.6 percent at year-end 2024. Well-performing assets and a reduction in inventory are helping stabilize the market, albeit unevenly. Three distinct trends are emerging: an outperformance of well-positioned Class B suburban properties, a continued flight to trophy assets in the central business district (CBD) and the conversion of obsolete buildings to alternative uses across the region. Rise of suburban Class B One of the most notable …

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IllinoisMarket ReportsMidwestMidwest Market ReportsMultifamily

Chicago Market Is Steadfast on the Performance Leaderboard

by Kristin Harlow

By Shubhra Jha, Standard Real Estate Investments Chicago was not on many investors’ bingo cards. However, consistently popping up in the top five apartment markets nationwide for rent growth and occupancy outperformance is changing that perception.  Metro Chicago boasts relative affordability compared with its coastal counterparts, a range of job opportunities at all skill levels and the ongoing need for attainable housing. These factors create a multifamily investment landscape poised to deliver steady, long-term returns driven by resilient and stable demand. Economy, affordability Chicago is a diversified and consistent economic powerhouse, counted as the third largest major metro area in the United States and the largest non-coastal city. Its geographic location in America’s heartland combined with its historic strength in a wide array of sectors ranging from agriculture/food processing and finance/commodities trading to manufacturing, transportation/logistics and education play an important role in the metro’s resilience throughout economic cycles. Notably, there is no singular industry dominating the economy.  Looking ahead, sizeable investments in quantum computing, life sciences and fintech will build on Chicago’s historic advantages in finance, trading and education. Despite its diversified and steadily expanding economic base, Chicago remains an affordable city for its residents. Median home prices in the …

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IndianaIndustrialMarket ReportsMidwestMidwest Market Reports

Indianapolis Industrial Market: From Resilience to Resurgence in 2026

by Kristin Harlow

By Abigail Sievers, JLL The Indianapolis industrial market is entering 2026 not merely recovering but evolving. What began as a “quiet” shift has matured into a definitive new phase of activity characterized by renewed user confidence, disciplined development and a manufacturing ecosystem that’s gaining national attention.  While headlines often focus on coastal or larger Midwest markets, Indianapolis is steadily emerging as a strategic center for large-scale industrial investment, offering the rare trifecta of scalable Class A space, a resilient workforce and the high-capacity infrastructure that modern manufacturers require. Mega deals return After more than two years of cautious expansion, the market is now seeing a resurgence of large industrial commitments. Leases and acquisitions exceeding 500,000 square feet — which had significantly slowed during the previous 24 months — are re-entering the landscape as users move forward with previously paused growth plans amid market uncertainty.  The broader leasing environment reflects this momentum. In fourth-quarter 2025 alone, Indianapolis recorded 7.2 million square feet of absorption — the strongest single‑quarter performance since the third quarter of 2021. Year‑to‑date absorption reached 13.1 million square feet, surpassing the previous two years combined. These mega deals confirm what we’re hearing daily from both new and existing …

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HospitalityIndianaMarket ReportsMidwestMidwest Market Reports

Indianapolis Lodging Edges Out National Trends

by Kristin Harlow

By Aghfar Arun, Bradford Allen Indianapolis has a reputation as a convention town, but its hotel story has moved well beyond lanyards and name badges. A growing mix of sports, healthcare, corporate and leisure demand is now filling rooms year‑round — downtown and across the suburbs — turning the market into one of the Midwest’s most reliable hospitality overachievers. Event boom downtown Indianapolis experienced 8.1 million room nights of demand in the 12-month period ending at mid-year 2025, according to CoStar data. This is over 580,000 more than the market’s pre-COVID peak.  To meet this demand, the construction pipeline at mid-year included more than 1,500 hotel rooms, with another 3,402 rooms in the final planning stages and 3,220 rooms proposed.  According to Visit Indy, new projects slated for delivery in 2026 include a pair of adaptive reuse projects: The Kimpton will transform the historic Odd Fellows Building into a 167-key luxury hotel and the Motto Hotel will bring 116 rooms to the King Cole Building. The most notable project is Signia by Hilton, a 38-story hotel with 800 guest rooms developed alongside a 143,500-square-foot expansion of the Indiana Convention Center.   A snapshot of downtown Indianapolis, prepared last year by …

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Market ReportsMichiganMidwestMidwest Market ReportsOffice

Flight to Quality, Slow Road to Reinvention Define Detroit’s Office Outlook

by Kristin Harlow

By Andy Gutman, Farbman Group The Detroit office market has moved past the initial shock of the post-pandemic years, but the idea that all challenges are over would be premature. Looking ahead in 2026, office in Detroit would be best described as stabilizing but still highly selective, shaped by a continued flight to quality, cautious capital markets and a growing emphasis on service and tenant experience.  While vacancy remains elevated compared with pre-pandemic norms, limited new construction and a clear bifurcation between high- and low-quality assets are helping prevent further deterioration. The next phase of the cycle will be defined by how effectively landlords adapt to tenant expectations and how long it takes for capital markets to allow older assets to meaningfully change hands. Detroit office in 2026 By the numbers, Detroit’s office market in 2026 shows stability without significant growth pressure. Vacancy estimates range from approximately 15.7 to 23.3 percent, depending on data source and asset class. Marcus & Millichap, for example, projects a 2026 year-end vacancy of roughly 15.7 percent, which is a modest 10-basis-point increase year-over-year. Broader datasets that include older inventory report vacancy closer to 23 percent. Asking rents have remained largely flat, with Class A …

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