JLL report finds the U.S. is more back to the office than you think

More employees are returning to the office than you think, as re-entry rates reach a post-pandemic high and overall, the U.S. is closer to pre-pandemic normal, according to JLL.

Workers were never in the office 100 percent of the time before COVID-19 swept the world in 2020. JLL finds the pre-pandemic top of scale was more in the 70- to 80-percent range for time spent at the office for an average employee.

Secondary growth markets outpace major metros, specifically the Sun Belt markets. Atlanta: Austin, Texas; Charlotte, N.C.; Dallas; Denver: Miami: Nashville; Phoenix and Raleigh, N.C. are at 76.6 percent quarterly leasing relative to pre-pandemic normal.  Meanwhile, large metro markets, including Boston, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles,  New York City, San Francisco and Seattle, are at 60.2 percent.  In particular, Texas stands out in the RTO race, with the top three highest re-entry rates being in Austin (60.5 percent), Houston (57.6 percent) and Dallas (