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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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IndustrialMarket ReportsNew JerseyNortheastNortheast Market Reports

New Jersey Industrial Market Returns to Normal

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams Nobody likes a vacant building, but symbolically, they do have some usefulness. A handful of empty structures here and there can be illustrative of a market that’s actually balanced and healthy, one in which tenants have some options and flexibility. In addition, vacant buildings can serve as warnings to future developers of what not to do and when not to do it.  Attaching this allegorical significance to the New Jersey industrial market might seem odd, given that this sector has been and should continue to be one of the strongest segments in the country, in terms of both the geography and the asset class. The residential density, highly developed infrastructure and proximity to major ports and transit hubs will likely never lose their appeal to industrial investors and developers. But even the strongest markets can overheat from time to time, and it typically takes a couple years for the high to completely wear off such that indicators of market normalcy can become readily visible.  That’s what appears to be taking shape throughout the Garden State’s industrial market. And without naming names or picking on specific projects, sources say that there are undoubtedly some buildings in New Jersey …

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IndustrialMarket ReportsSouth CarolinaSoutheastSoutheast Market Reports

Upstate South Carolina Industrial Market Is Reaching an Inflection Point

by John Nelson

The Upstate South Carolina industrial market is at an inflection point — an expected condition in a maturing and evolving market. Similar transitions have occurred in prior cycles and have consistently required lease rates to adjust more rapidly than traditional annual market escalations. These adjustments are driven by a combination of factors, including supply and demand dynamics, construction costs, capital markets and broader economic conditions. Currently, construction costs are the primary constraint impacting new deliveries. The post-COVID development surge resulted in over 30 million square feet of speculative industrial construction, a portion of which has yet to be fully absorbed.  Today, we are approaching pre-COVID metrics with roughly 6.4 million square feet of speculative inventory (delivered or under construction) and an overall vacancy rate of approximately 7.3 percent. At this level, certain submarkets are at the point where additional speculative inventory will be required to meet tenant demand. The challenge lies in pricing. Much of the existing vacant space was delivered under a materially different construction cost structure, resulting in lease comps that do not reflect today’s construction and land costs. While incremental rent growth has occurred, it has not fully bridged the gap between legacy pricing and the economics …

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Market ReportsNevadaRestaurantRetailWesternWestern Market Reports

Northern Nevada Retail Gears Up for a Transformative Year

by John Nelson

— By Shawn Smith and Sean Retzloff of Colliers — Northern Nevada retail has entered 2026 with a sense of forward motion, shaped by population growth, changing consumer spending habits and renewed interest from national retailers. Grocery-anchored centers continue to serve as reliable engines of demand, particularly in Sparks, where national chains and quick-service restaurants (QSR) are actively pursuing space. These QSR brands continue to be fueled by the post-pandemic preference for convenience and speed — and they find Northern Nevada’s demographic expansion particularly attractive. The lifestyle shift toward wellness is also redefining the tenant mix, with concepts like Planet Fitness building on momentum and gravitating toward suburban neighborhoods where resident demand for amenity-rich environments close to home is rising. This suburban pull is especially evident in Spanish Springs, South Reno and the North Valleys. Growth is moderate in these areas, which justifies new retail infrastructure with flexibility to accommodate retailers eager to enter maturing communities. Once considered fringe, these outer markets are now central to the region’s retail growth story. Shifting Economics of Retail Space The economics of securing space are evolving as demand grows outward. Lease rates are expected to rise modestly to the $2.25 to $2.50 per square foot …

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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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Conference CoverageIndustrialMarket ReportsTexasTexas Market Reports

InterFace Panel: Oversupply in Austin Industrial Market Is Real, But Complicated

by Taylor Williams

AUSTIN, TEXAS — By any objective, outside-looking-in metric, the Austin industrial market is currently overbuilt, but brokers who are on the inside looking out say that the narrative is more nuanced than the numbers suggest.  According to CBRE’s fourth-quarter 2025 market report, the marketwide vacancy rate was 20.4 percent at the end of last year, which represented a 10.9 percent increase from the third quarter of 2025. Approximately 3.4 million square feet of new space was delivered in the fourth quarter as part of 9.5 million square feet of new construction that came on line year-to-date, per CBRE, while fourth-quarter net absorption was less than 500,000 square feet. Qualitatively, the report concluded that the year-end vacancy rate was “an all-time high,” while 2025 was “one of the busiest years for development in market history.” The Austin industrial market has traditionally differed from those of its sprawling Texas counterparts — Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) and Houston — which have seen numerous massive projects built and absorbed over the past decade. Industrial deals and projects in the state capital have historically trended smaller, though that has changed somewhat in recent years as two tech giants — Tesla and Samsung — have planted massive …

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District of ColumbiaMarket ReportsMarylandMixed-UseRestaurantRetailSoutheastSoutheast Market ReportsVirginia

Mid-Atlantic Retail Market Is Experiencing Methodical Growth

by John Nelson

Retail real estate across the Mid-Atlantic is having a moment — but it’s a disciplined one. As fundamentals remain healthy in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., the region is seeing a notably more selective approach to retail growth. Years of limited new development, zoning constraints and rising construction costs have tightened supply, pushing owners, investors and municipalities to be far more intentional about what gets built — and where. Sources interviewed for this article point to the sustained demand for well-located shopping centers, such as those anchored by strong tenants, daily-needs retailers and dense surrounding populations.“Retail today is about durability,” states Mike Castellitto, chief operating officer of Broad Reach Retail Partners. “Assets that serve essential, repeat-use visitors continue to outperform and attract both tenants and investors.” Shifting consumer preferences in VirginiaFrom Washington, D.C.’s dense suburban corridors to fast-growing secondary markets, Virginia’s retail real estate landscape remains one of the Mid-Atlantic’s steadiest performers. The Commonwealth’s strongest retail fundamentals are often seen in Northern Virginia and select regional hubs like metro Philadelphia, Virginia Beach and Richmond, where household income growth and population density create robust demand. Jim Ashby, senior vice president of the Retail Services Group at Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer, …

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IndustrialMarket ReportsNevadaWesternWestern Market Reports

Northern Nevada Industrial Finds Its Balance

by John Nelson

— By Joel Fountain of Dickson Commercial Group —  After several years defined by rapid expansion and record development, Northern Nevada’s industrial market closed 2025 showing clear signs of stabilization. Vacancy leveled off, leasing momentum returned and capital markets activity began to pick back up. All told, these indicators point to a market that’s entering a more balanced phase. One of the most notable shifts has been the normalization of vacancy after an unprecedented wave of new supply. Direct vacancy hovered around 11 percent throughout 2025, suggesting the market has reached a temporary equilibrium between supply and demand. While elevated compared to the sub-3 percent vacancy levels seen during the pandemic-driven surge, continued positive absorption helped keep the market stable as it digested several million square feet of recently delivered product. In terms of region, submarket performance varied considerably. Central-West, Airport and South Reno tightened meaningfully during the year, with combined vacancy falling from 10.4 percent in late 2024 to 6.1 percent by the end of 2025. These areas benefited from limited new construction and steady demand from regional service users and smaller distribution tenants. Conversely, the North Valleys and the I-80 East corridor, which accounted for roughly 83 percent …

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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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Market ReportsNew YorkNortheastNortheast Market ReportsRetail

New York’s Cannabis Retail Market Has Entered Its Real Estate Phase

by Taylor Williams

By Greg Tannor, executive managing director, and Jessica Gerstein, director, Lee & Associates NYC For much of the past three years, the rollout of legal cannabis in the state of New York has been defined by headlines about licensing delays, regulatory hurdles and political infighting.  That phase is largely over. Hundreds of adult-use dispensaries are now open across the state, and the market is entering a far more consequential — and less discussed — stage. Cannabis retail in New York is no longer constrained primarily by licenses. It is constrained by real estate. On the ground, the industry is moving rapidly out of its novelty phase and into a performance-driven phase where locational quality, operational discipline and realistic deal structures are separating winners from losers. This shift has major implications, not only for operators, but also for landlords, lenders and brokers who are navigating the sector for the first time. Compliance, Not Curiosity, Is The New Bottleneck Demand from licensed dispensary operators remains strong, particularly in New York City. But truly viable retail locations that meet state and local requirements while also making economic sense remain scarce. In Manhattan, the challenge is especially acute. Buffer zones restricting proximity to schools, houses of worship …

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