— By Tanner Olson of Legend Commercial — Downtown Salt Lake City has undergone a meaningful transformation over the past decade. The growth of ground-floor mixed-use retail, a rapidly expanding bar and restaurant scene, and the arrival of nationally recognized brands such as STK Steakhouse, the Capital Grille, Uchi and concepts affiliated with Fox Restaurant Concepts reflect a maturing urban core. At the same time, local operators such as Aker, Matteo, Urban Hill and many others have elevated the city’s culinary identity, with homegrown concepts adding depth and authenticity to the market. It was only 15 years ago that Salt Lake largely functioned as a commuter-based retail environment. Consumers prioritized surface parking and drive-thru convenience. Downtown activity outside of peak weekend hours was limited, while urban living lacked the density and vibrancy needed to support consistent retail demand. That dynamic has shifted. Today, tens of thousands of multifamily units have been delivered in and around the CBD, accompanied by hundreds of thousands of square feet of ground-floor retail. Just two to three years ago, downtown contained roughly 200,000 square feet of available mixed-use retail space, fragmented across 60 to 70 small-format spaces. Filling that space required not just tenants, but …
— By Patrick Bodnar of CBRE — Utah’s multifamily market remains one of the most resilient and compelling real estate environments in the country, supported by exceptional economic fundamentals and a steadily tightening development pipeline. Utah once again ranked No. 1 in the nation in 2025 in the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) economic outlook index, marking its 18th consecutive year at the top and earning high marks for overall performance, labor participation and business affordability. These strengths, paired with ongoing population and job growth, continue to reinforce consistent long-term demand for rental housing across the Wasatch Front. Against this backdrop, rent trends are beginning to shift. After several years of rent stagnation driven by elevated supply, rent growth is positioned to rebound in the second half of 2026. The past three years were characterized by relatively flat asking rents, but CBRE’s analysis indicates that future rent growth is approaching as new deliveries decline and supply is absorbed. This shift is largely the result of two converging factors: a meaningful slowdown in new construction starts — driven by higher interest rates and sustained construction cost pressures — and persistently strong absorption, which places Utah among the top-performing absorption markets in …
— By Mike Embree of Drawbridge Realty — After 16 consecutive quarters of either negative or negligible net absorption, Salt Lake City’s office market closed 2025 on a positive note. The end result was 114,700 square feet of direct occupancy gains, per Cushman & Wakefield. This resulted in 263,000 square feet of direct absorption for the year, spurring a 500-basis point decline in the direct vacancy rate, which now stands at 19.4 percent. It’s too early to say that the market has turned the corner, but the signs are promising. For landlords, one positive in a market with about 10 million square feet of availability is that new office construction has effectively stalled for now. Only one building was delivered in 2025, adding just 180,000 square feet to the existing inventory with no new office projects on the drawing board. At the same time, more than a dozen buildings were removed from the office leasing market, either by developers pursuing multifamily conversions or purchases by owner-users. One such sale occurred in the fourth quarter when the Salt Lake City Corporation of Public Utilities purchased One Airport Tech, a two-story, 87,657-square-foot building near Airport Technology Park campus. C&W data notes …
— By Rebecca Lloyd of Cushman & Wakefield — Salt Lake City’s industrial market ended 2025 in a transitional period defined by rising vacancy, shifting demand across product types, and heightened activity in both peripheral submarkets and the owner‑user segment. Overall vacancy climbed to 7.9 percent, driven by more than 8.5 million square feet of new warehouse/distribution deliveries since early 2024, nearly half of which remain available. This is particularly apparent in the North West submarket, which continues to dominate the region’s industrial footprint. Despite this supply influx, tenant demand held firm with 5.9 million square feet of new leasing activity recorded in 2025. Absorption remained steady across small and mid-sized facilities, with monthly net asking rents remaining stable at $0.80 to $0.81 per square foot. Smaller 10,000- to 100,00-square-foot buildings posted the tightest availability at 6 percent vacancy, while larger big box properties over 100,000 square feet saw vacancy rise to 15.7 percent, widening the performance gap between segments. Land scarcity, power constraints and elevated development costs continue to limit opportunities in core Salt Lake submarkets, forcing more tenants and developers to pivot toward Utah County. This is where a sizeable 4-million-square-foot proposed development pipeline is helping narrow …
— By Jared Glover of Berkadia — While several Sun Belt and Rocky Mountain markets continue to work through challenging operations, elevated supply and weakening fundamentals, Reno has emerged as a bright spot in the West. The city posted 2.5 percent year-over-year employment growth, adding more jobs in 2025 than Las Vegas. This is a remarkable stat given that Reno’s population is roughly one-fifth the size of its Southern neighbor. At the same time, Reno’s population grew at roughly four times the national average as median household income climbed to just over $90,000 as the economy continued to diversify into technology, healthcare and manufacturing. In fact, Northern Nevada saw 14 site visits per month last year for potential corporate relocations, according to a recent report by the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN). This places the region it in the top 1 percent of U.S. markets, reinforcing long-term growth expectations. Several major development projects look to keep this momentum going. The most significant is the $1 billion transformation of the Reno-Tahoe International Airport, which saw a record 4.9 million passengers in 2025. The University of Nevada, Reno, also continues to invest heavily in new buildings to attract and retain top …
— 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 …
— 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 …
— By J.C. Casillas of NAI Capital — Orange County’s multifamily sector entered 2026 in a period of moderation. Following a recent peak in deliveries, fourth-quarter 2025 saw developers pull back sharply, allowing vacancy to stabilize at a tight 3.8 percent even as rent growth plateaued. The shift reflects strategic caution as elevated interest rates and pricing expectations continue to shape underwriting. Demand and Supply Navigating the ‘Supply Cliff’ Vacant units inched up 0.1 percent quarter over quarter to 11,926 but remained down 1.6 percent year over year, signaling gradual relief from earlier supply pressure. Developers delivered just 430 new units in the fourth quarter, a 26 percent drop from the third quarter. This brought year-to-date deliveries to 1,979 units, down 43 percent from 2024. With only 4,775 units still under construction — a 14 percent annual decline — the market is approaching a potential supply cliff that could tighten inventory by 2027. Vacancy held at 3.8 percent, suggesting steady renter demand. Average asking rents slipped $9 from the third quarter to $2,702 per unit. The good news is it still posted a 1.7 percent year-over-year gain. Since the 2024 development peak, higher borrowing costs and construction expenses have tempered the …
— By Wes Hunnicutt and Matt Moore of Stream Realty Partners — Following a record-low vacancy of 1.4 percent in fourth-quarter 2022, Orange County’s industrial market has experienced a sustained period of rising vacancy and negative net absorption, driven by broader economic caution, elevated interest rates and softening demand for space. However, it also showed signs of slight improvement at the end of 2025. Vacancy stood at 6.1 percent at the end of last year, down slightly quarter over quarter from 6.2 percent, but higher than 5.5 percent 12 months ago. For context, vacancy immediately prior to the pandemic was 3.3 percent. Availability, which includes all spaces listed on the market for lease, came in at 7.5 percent at the end of last year. A defining feature of recent quarters has been low tenant demand for space, with seven consecutive quarters of negative absorption. This reflects cautious tenant behavior as businesses delay expansion decisions amid economic headwinds and higher borrowing costs. Fourth-quarter 2025 ended this streak with the market experiencing positive net absorption of 285,000 square feet. Larger distribution and logistics facilities experienced increased pressure and longer lease-up timelines, whereas smaller spaces of less than 100,000 square feet have performed …
— By Tim Donald of JLL Capital Markets — When investment capital flows into Orange County’s office market today, it’s revealing a fundamental shift that sophisticated investors can’t afford to ignore: the distinction between quality and commodity office space has never been more pronounced, and that gap is only widening. The challenge for many investors has been identifying opportunities that offer both stability and upside in an environment where traditional core assets provide minimal growth while pure value-add plays carry significant execution risk. What we’re seeing emerge in Orange County is a compelling middle ground, deals that feel core-plus but deliver value-add returns, and there’s substantial liquidity chasing these opportunities. The Tier System Reshapes Investment Strategy JLL’s national office team has developed a tiering system that divides office properties into distinct quality categories based on amenities, location and tenant appeal. In Orange County, this frame-work has revealed a market operating on fundamentally different planes. Tier I assets, representing a small fraction of the county’s inventory, are demonstrating exceptional resilience while Tier II properties continue to attract significant tenant and investor interest. This isn’t just academic categorization. The performance differential shows that investors are willing to pay premiums for assets with clear …
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