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From the Editor: Powering the Future of Development
Energy — how we produce it, manage it and plan for its future — is driving some of the biggest decisions in commercial real estate today. Our cover story takes a closer look at how developers are meeting growing energy demands for data centers and other power-intensive projects, and how innovation in power and sustainability is shaping the next generation of industrial development.
Kathryn Hamilton
This issue also takes you inside the transformation of Philadelphia’s Navy Yard — a striking model of adaptive reuse and placemaking — and celebrates 25 years of progress from the NAIOP Research Foundation. You’ll get insights from research directors across leading CRE firms who recently came together to share industry outlooks and learn what lenders and buyers are looking for in the office market.
As we look toward the future of commercial real estate, one thing is clear: Energy, in all its forms, continues to drive our industry forward.
Telling the stories that shape our industry,
Kathryn Hamilton, CAE
Editor-in-Chief
In Brief
Notable facts and figures on the state of the commercial real estate industry, culled from media reports and other sources.
Data Centers
522
The number of hyperscale data centers in the United States through the first half of 2025, according to Synergy Research Group data as reported by the Wall Street Journal. An additional 280 such facilities are projected to come online through 2028.
Multifamily
13 to 15
The percentage point discrepancy in future renter demand by unit type versus existing supply for two bedrooms/junior two bedrooms (52% unit demand vs. 39% unit supply) and three bedrooms (23% vs. 8%), based on findings from RCKRBX’s National Renter Demand Indexing study. On the flip side, 21% of the 2,342 prospective renters surveyed voiced future demand for one-bedroom units versus unit supply of 41%. “Renters are seeking larger units and different configurations than current supply would indicate,” according to the report’s key takeaways. “[The] study found significant untapped and underserved demand for 2- and 3-bedroom units at competitive and premium rental rates.”
929
The number of deals, totaling $41 billion, in the 30 most active U.S. multifamily markets through September, according to data provided to Bisnow by Yardi Matrix. The average cap rate for the deals was 5.04%. Bisnow noted a more than 200-basis-point gap in cap rates across the most active markets. “The city-to-city differences offer a unique insight into how investors are measuring risk against reward in both mainstay primary multifamily markets and the pandemic-era darlings.”
Industrial
8%
The rise in vacancies in industrial buildings larger than 100,000 square feet since 2022 in North America, according to Lee & Associates’ market overview for the third quarter of 2025. Buildings from 50,000 square feet to 100,000 square feet have experienced a 5.7% increase in vacancies over the same period. “Buildings smaller than 50,000 SF are in most demand ... with vacancy typically at less than 5%.”
Office
62%
The percentage of office space preleased in the construction pipeline that was taken by finance, insurance, real estate and technology companies in the top 14 office markets at the end of September, according to a Colliers research report. That equated to 4.2 million square feet, with Amazon preleasing the largest amount of space (1 million square feet in Puget Sound), followed by Goldman Sachs (700,000 square feet in Dallas-Fort Worth). Colliers noted that only 16.8 million square feet of office space was actively under construction in the top 14 markets, with 41% of the space preleased.
23.2 Million
The number of square feet the New York City office market leased through the first nine months of 2025, representing the largest total in 19 years, per CBRE. “Manhattan developers are moving ahead with more than a half-dozen new office projects, the most at any point since the pandemic,” the Wall Street Journal reported. “They are encouraged by a record 143 leases signed so far in 2025 for more than $100 a square foot.”
Retail
$7.8 Billion
The amount lenders had financed in single-asset commercial mortgage-backed securities for U.S. mall properties through early October. In 2024, the total amount for the year was $4 billion, according to CoStar data. “It shows that banks expect investors to be willing to buy the securities backed by these retail centers,” CoStar News reported.
Artificial Intelligence
57%
The percentage of mid- to senior-level professionals at leading institutional real estate investment firms who said they have advanced past simple AI tasks in a commissioned survey for the Dealpath report “The State of AI Readiness in Commercial Real Estate.” Of respondents, 8% are exploring new investment use cases powered by AI, 13% are piloting bespoke tools designed to streamline CRE investment tasks, and 36% are actively scaling AI solutions across their organizations.
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