Asking rents achieve a record as vacancy tightens further

Average rents across the Chicago market climbed to a record $8.47 per square foot (psf) in the third quarter, up 6.9% from a year ago. Vacancy fell to 6.8%, a full percentage point below last year and its lowest level since 2024. Nine-month absorption reached 15.8 million square feet (msf), more than nine times the 1.7 msf recorded over the same period in 2025, while new deliveries slowed to 6.4 msf year to date, down 36.1% from last year’s pace. With fewer new options coming online and demand strengthening, tenants face an increasingly limited pool of functional space.

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