U.S. commercial real estate - statistics & facts

The commercial real estate sector in the United States has undergone significant transformations since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The surge in e-commerce has resulted in heightened investor interest in industrial and logistics real estate. Conversely, the office sector has faced significant hurdles, resulting in dampened investor sentiment. With the advent of hybrid work models as the new norm, offices must adapt to changing requirements and reduced demand. Notably, the commercial construction industry in the United States has been on a steady growth trajectory since 2010, with the construction of commercial real estate worth a total of 115 billion U.S. dollars in 2022. In the same year, the value of construction starts for warehouses exceeded 27 billion U.S. dollars, compared to roughly 20 billion U.S. dollars for office properties.

Has investment activity in the commercial property market recovered?

In light of the pandemic-induced downturn, the commercial property investment market witnessed a decline in investor sentiment, compounded by international travel restrictions and regional lockdowns. Nevertheless, investment activity in the sector rebounded in 2021 and 2022. The multifamily, industrial, and office sectors had the strongest performance, with transaction activity reaching 279 billion U.S. dollars, 142 billion U.S. dollars, and 109 billion U.S. dollars, respectively. According to experts, the hottest markets for industrial real estate in 2023 will be Northern New Jersey, Miami, and New York-Brooklyn. In the office sector, the markets of greatest interest to investors are Miami, Raleigh/Durham, and West Palm Beach.

What is the current state of the commercial property occupiers’ market?

During the pandemic, many businesses placed their upscaling plans or lease renewals on hold. The rising absorption rates for commercial property show that this trend is gradually changing. In the industrial sector, demand has been stronger than ever, with the share of vacant space as low as four percent as of the second quarter of 2022 and rents rapidly increasing. In contrast to the industrial sector, which benefitted from the rise of e-commerce, the retail sector was heavily impacted by the pandemic and suffered widespread store closures. As of the final quarter of 2022, malls had a vacancy rate of 8.7 percent. In the office sector, the vacancy rates remained elevated, at 15.4 percent as of the third quarter of 2022. To retain tenants, landlords were forced to introduce various incentives, such as rent-free periods or fit-outs. Although asking rents did not decline dramatically, effective rents saw a decrease of over six percent between the onset of the pandemic and the third quarter of 2022.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Apr 25, 2023

Key insights

Value of construction put in place
115bn USD
Value of private warehouse construction
61.5bn USD
Value of private office construction starts
20.1bn USD
Get more insights

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