At a glance
- Leasing above $200 per square foot accelerated, with JLL recording 40 transactions in the first half of 2026 against 59 across 2024 and 2025 combined.
- For an allocator or lender underwriting Manhattan office exposure, the 4.9% applies to trophy buildings rather than the whole market.
- The report, "NYC Office: A Market Waiting on Capital," projects new supply declining from an annual average of 7.8 million square feet between 2018 and 2023 to 1.5 million square feet a year through 2029.
Trophy office vacancy in Manhattan has fallen to a cycle-low 4.9%, below pre-pandemic levels, as tenants compete for limited premium space, according to a JLL report covered by IREI.
Leasing above $200 per square foot accelerated, with JLL recording 40 transactions in the first half of 2026 against 59 across 2024 and 2025 combined. Rents of $300 per square foot are becoming increasingly common, reaching that level three times faster than the previous $200 benchmark, the report found. The six-month total is more than two-thirds of the two-year figure.
For an allocator or lender underwriting Manhattan office exposure, the 4.9% applies to trophy buildings rather than the whole market. The report leaves open whether $300 rents represent a lasting shift in office pricing or a squeeze from limited trophy availability, a distinction that shapes renewal-spread assumptions at the next lease roll.
The report, "NYC Office: A Market Waiting on Capital," projects new supply declining from an annual average of 7.8 million square feet between 2018 and 2023 to 1.5 million square feet a year through 2029. Capital constraints continue to limit new development, which the report says could place additional upward pressure on premium office rents.
Reported by the Sectors desk from IREI. Published . Corrections