The U.S. office market is beginning to stabilize, with improving demand, flat vacancy and a sharp pullback in new supply signaling a shift from broad-based decline to a more selective recovery, according to Cushman & Wakefield.
While overall office absorption was negative in the first quarter by 4.0 million square feet, underlying demand has strengthened over the past year. The four-quarter rolling absorption total rose by 5.2 million square feet, the highest level since early 2020.
“The quarterly number doesn’t tell the full story,” said David C. Smith, head of Americas insights at Cushman & Wakefield. “What matters is that demand has been improving consistently over the past year, and that momentum is now showing up across a broader set of markets.”
That momentum is not evenly distributed but it is spreading. In fact, if the four weakest-performing markets were excluded, national absorption over the past year would exceed +20 million square f
