As of February 2026, the national office vacancy rate reached 17.6 percent, representing a 200-basis-point year-over-year drop.
Read the latest Yardi Matrix Office Market Outlook.
Report Highlights
- The national office vacancy rate clocked in at 17.6 percent in February—200 basis points lower over the past 12 months.
- The national full-service equivalent listing rate stood at $32.79 per square foot in February—24 cents higher from the previous month.
- The office pipeline comprised 28.2 million square feet, representing 0.4 percent of total stock.
- Office investment volume during the first two months of 2026 generated $7.8 billion, with properties selling for $218 per square foot on average.
Vacancy recovery continues
As of February, the national office vacancy rate continued to fall at 17.6 percent—200 basis points lower year-over-year. The vacancy improvement is scattered nationwide, with only eight of the top 25 U.S. office markets with rates above 20 percent in February.
Denver recorded the steepest year-over-year, with a vacancy rate clocking in at 19.8 percent, representing a 520 basis points decline. Other markets with notable decreases include the Bay Area (-420 basis points), Houston (-390 basis points) and San Francisco (-360 basis points).
Among the top 25 U.S. markets, Seattle’s rate remained the highest in February, at 25.1 percent. Austin (24.6 percent) and San Francisco (24.2 percent) followed. Miami recorded the lowest rate nationwide at 12.8 percent, followed by Manhattan (13.1 percent).
The national full-service equivalent listing rate stood at $32.79 per square foot in February—24 cents up from the previous month but 1.9 percent lower from a year ago. Manhattan remained the top metro for office rents, at $73.45 per square foot, followed by San Francisco’s $62.54 per square foot. The lowest average rents in the U.S. were recorded again in Detroit, at $21.78 per square foot.
Construction starts an downward trajectory
The national office pipeline comprised 28.2 million square feet in February—accounting for 0.4 percent of existing stock. Office completions so far included 2.3 million square feet.
Construction activity remained at a historical low as office starts slowed over the past two years. In 2025, only three markets had more than 1 million square feet commencing construction, a notable contrast from 2019, when there were 20 markets with at least 1 million square feet breaking ground.
As of February 2026, Boston remained the leading metro for construction, with 3.9 million square feet underway. Manhattan and Dallas followed, with 2.8 million square feet and 2.4 million square feet, respectively. On the opposite side stood Seattle, where only 19,982 square feet were underway.
The office investment volume reached $7.8 billion as of February. Investors closed 316 transactions with properties selling for $218 per square foot on average. Manhattan topped the charts for office sales, with $1.6 billion in deals and properties trading at $740 per square foot. San Francisco’s average sale prices reached $1,088 per square foot, the highest figure among the top 25 U.S. office markets.
Read the full Yardi Matrix Office Market Report: March 2026.
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