Overview

• Office vacancy rates in the US have reached a record high of 19.6%, surpassing the previous records of 19.3% set in 1986 and 1991.
• The surge in vacancies is attributed to the shift towards remote work due to the pandemic and overbuilding in the 1980s and '90s.
• Texas cities, Houston, Dallas, and Austin, have the highest office-vacancy rates in the country.
• Older buildings, particularly those built before the open-plan era, make up the majority of the vacant space.
• Analysts predict that office vacancies will continue to rise due to the increasing popularity of hybrid and remote work models.