Downtown News
Dallas ranks near top of the list of highest office vacancies in U.S.
Downtown Dallas skyline.
A new study of the office rental market in the U.S. has unfortunate news for Dallas' office scene: It puts Dallas-Fort Worth at the third highest rate of office vacancies nationwide.
According to a report by Indian service provider Outsource2India, 18 percent of all office space in DFW is sitting empty — a figure that has grown by 2.3 percent since 2023. So don't go blaming the pandemic, at least not directly.
Metropolitan areas in Texas and California dominate the list of top 10 cities with the highest vacancy rates. San Francisco tops the list with a staggering 21.7 percent of vacant office space — meaning that more than one out of five offices are empty.
Houston comes close at No. 2 with a vacancy rate of 18.6 percent. Austin comes in behind Dallas at No. 4 on the list, with a 16.7 percent office vacancy rate.
While climbing office vacancies have been attributed to the pandemic, the report notes that the situation has worsened over the last 12 months, with an average increase in vacancy rates of 11 percent — underscoring the significant challenges in commercial real estate right now.
The study dovetails with other workspace trends including the rising demand and popularity of remote and hybrid professions since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Outsource2India suggests major businesses in cities like Dallas will need to reimagine their work culture and office spaces in order to compete with flexible work models.
“As remote work continues to reshape workplace dynamics, there is a pressing need for this market to evolve and adapt,” the report says.
Dallas commutes aren't getting any easier (nor are the city's drivers getting any better), and more workers are starting to look for less commute-heavy vocations in suburbs with top job markets.
The top 10 metro areas with the highest office vacancy rates are:
- No. 1 – San Francisco, California
- No. 2 – Houston, Texas
- No. 3 – Dallas, Texas
- No. 4 – Austin, Texas
- No. 5 – Washington, D.C.
- No. 6 – Chicago, Illinois
- No. 7 – Denver, Colorado
- No. 8 – Phoenix, Arizona
- No. 9 – Los Angeles, California
- No. 10 – San Jose, California
Outsource2India tracked office rent prices in major U.S. metropolitan areas for 2023 and 2024 to discover the top 10 metro areas with the highest office vacancy rates using data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
The full report can be found on outsource2india.com.
