Chicago suburban office market report
Q2 2026
The Chicago suburban office market showed signs of stabilization through H1 2026, even as leasing activity remained below last year's pace. Positive absorption returned after significant occupancy losses in 2025, driven by large backfill transactions in the Northwest submarket and improving performance across several suburban corridors. While overall availability remains elevated at 29.6%, it has declined year-over-year, supported by reduced direct availability and increased tenant occupancy. Moving forward, leasing momentum in the North and Northwest submarkets, combined with continued backfilling of large vacant blocks, will be key factors shaping the pace of recovery across the suburban market.
Total leasing activity in H1 2026
Suburban Chicago office leasing activity totaled 5.3 million square feet (msf) in FY 2025, reflecting a 21% decrease compared to FY 2024. The existing activity in 2025 has been driven by the northern submarkets and Eastern E/W Corridor submarket, totaling nearly 4 msf. Significant movers in share of leasing activity include the North at +3% and Western E/W at -3% from FY 2024.
Net absorption in Class A assets, 2026 YTD
While leasing activity has declined in the Chicago Suburbs, absorption has turned positive through H1 2026. After posting -890k sf in H1 2025, absorption now sits at +14k sf through H1 2026, led by Wheels and ADP’s backfill of Zurich’s Schaumburg HQ.
Additionally, the Northwest, Western E/W Corridor, and Eastern E/W Corridor all posted positive absorption through H1 2026, led by the Northwest at +297k sf. O’Hare posted the steepest decline at -333k sf, weighed down by Dairy Management’s Rosemont move-out, followed by North at -168k sf after Essendant’s Parkway North exit.
Total availability rate, Q2 2026
Total market availability sits at 29.6% through Q2 2026, down 1.0 percentage point from Q2 2025. Direct availability has driven the decline, falling 1.1 percentage points, while sublet availability has remained roughly flat.
Class A+ continues to carry the highest availability at 37.6%, up 1.9 percentage points YoY. Class B remains the most stable class, holding near 24.7% availability.
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