Published on Monday, October 13, 2025
Access our latest property investment summary by completing the form below.
San Francisco and Manhattan near pre-pandemic norms.
Although office availability in the U.S. remains historically high, it declined for the fifth consecutive quarter in Q3 2025—a streak not seen in nearly a decade—highlighting a positive trend for the national office market, according to Avison Young’s Q3 National Office Report.
Total availability stood at 22.8% for the quarter, representing a net decrease of 23 million square feet from the previous three months. This included 19.8% direct availability and 3% sublet availability. Direct availability dropped by 13.2 million square feet, while sublet space decreased by 9.8 million square feet quarter-over-quarter.
Leasing activity totaled 207 million square feet during the first three quarters of 2025. That’s down 15.4% from the pre-pandemic first-half average of 244 million square feet, and 11.9% below 2024’s volume of 234 million square feet. Still, some key markets showed promising signs of recovery. In San Francisco, leasing rose 47% year-over-year, while Manhattan saw a 9% increase. Both markets are approaching pre-pandemic levels, with San Francisco just 17% below and Manhattan only 3% below those benchmarks.
That comes as large leases—those over 100,000 square feet—have declined by 19% nationally this year, with just 159 recorded so far.
Performance has varied significantly by asset class. Trophy office leasing outpaced historical norms, exceeding the pre-pandemic average by 12.5% over the past four quarters. In contrast, Class A leasing is still 19.9% below pre-COVID levels, though it has been gaining momentum recently as trophy space becomes scarcer. Class B and C leasing continues to lag, sitting 32.8% below pre-COVID averages and declining steadily since before the pandemic.
“Despite all segments undergoing a similar leasing halt immediately after the pandemic, leasing in the trophy segment has not only rebounded but surpassed historical averages,” the report notes. “Leasing in Class A and Class B/C has not made significant strides since an initial rebound in 2022.”