District of Columbia Office Market
The District of Columbia’s vacancy rate ended the first quarter of 2026 at 20.6%, even with the previous quarter and up 140 basis points year-over-year. Net absorption registered negative 29,561 SF during the first quarter, the fifth consecutive quarter with negative net absorption after DOGE-driven occupancy losses throughout the previous year. Average asking rates have finally turned a corner, increasing by 0.2% over the quarter and 0.5% over the year. Asking rents reached the highest level since the middle of 2021, ending the first quarter at $57.34/SF. The District’s trophy office product has outperformed all other asset classes, with vacancy tightening 870 basis points since peaking during the second quarter of 2020, ending the first quarter at 10.9%. The District of Columbia’s development pipeline remains historically low, with one delivery occurring during 2025 and no projects currently under construction. There were no deliveries during the first quarter of 2026, following just one delivery, 600 Fifth Street, NW during 2025. It was the market’s first new office property added since the second quarter of 2024. Conversions covering more than 7.0 million SF of office space have been completed or proposed in the District since 2020. Office-using jobs in the region are currently 3.1% higher than five years ago, but only slightly higher than in March 2020, just before the pandemic began. Year-over-year office employment declined by 2.3%.
Download District of Columbia Office Market Report 1Q26