Tampa Commercial Office Space for Rent

Q4 2025

Tampa Commercial Real Estate Market Report

Focus: Q4 2025 Market Trends

Executive Summary

The Tampa commercial real estate (CRE) market in late 2025 is defined by resilience, outperforming many national peers despite a broader economic slowdown [12]. The Office sector is seeing steady leasing activity and positive absorption, driven by a growing labor force and migration [1, 3]. Industrial fundamentals are normalizing after a period of rapid expansion, with vacancy ticking up as new supply enters the market [4, 5]. Retail remains exceptionally tight, with vacancy rates hovering near historic lows, while Multifamily is working through a supply peak that has temporarily softened rent growth [6, 8].

TenantBase Proprietary Data [13] highlights the distribution of active tenant demand over the last 90 days (491 total deals):

  • Retail/Storefront dominated market activity with 64.15% of all searches [13].
  • Warehouse was the second most active sector at 24.85% [13].
  • Office accounted for 11.81% of total search volume [13].

Office Market

Market Overview Tampa's office market is stabilizing, characterized by consistent tenant demand and a "flight to quality" that favored the Westshore and Midtown submarkets [1, 3].

  • Vacancy & Availability: Direct vacancy improved to 14.8% in Q3 2025, decreasing 70 basis points quarter-over-quarter [2]. Other reports place overall vacancy tighter at 10.1%, reflecting healthy demand for quality space [1].
  • Net Absorption: The market recorded positive net absorption of roughly 18,251 SF to 104,547 SF in Q3, bringing the year-to-date total near 500,000 SF [1, 2].
  • Rental Rates: Average asking rents rose to $32.30 - $36.81 per SF, with new construction commanding rates well into the $60s and $70s per SF [1, 2].
  • Market Drivers: Leasing activity is up 12% compared to 2019 levels, making Tampa one of the few U.S. markets to exceed pre-pandemic volumes [3]. The Westshore submarket accounted for 37% of all leasing activity [3].

TenantBase Activity [13]

  • Demand Share: Office accounted for 11.81% of total search volume [13].
  • Lease Term Preference: Demand is heavily skewed toward short-term flexibility [13]:
    • Less than one year: 50.00% of deals [13].
    • 2-3 Years: 28.57% of deals [13].
    • 3-5 Years: 16.07% of deals [13].
  • Size Requirements: Tenants seeking shorter commitments prefer significantly smaller spaces. The average lower SF required for a Less than one year term is 1,000 SF, compared to 2,917 SF for a 3-5 Years term [13].

Industrial & Warehouse Market

Market Overview The Tampa industrial market is shifting toward a balanced state, as a wave of new deliveries has pushed vacancy rates to a decade high despite solid leasing velocity [4, 5].

  • Vacancy & Rent: The vacancy rate climbed to approximately 6.9% to 7.2% as new supply outpaced demand [4, 5]. Despite this, asking rents remain resilient, supported by active leasing from small-to-mid-sized tenants [4].
  • Demand & Supply: Net absorption turned positive in Q3 2025 with nearly 250,000 SF absorbed, rebounding from negative figures earlier in the year [4]. Over 3.5 million SF was delivered in the past 12 months [5].
  • Investment: Sales volume reached $337 million in Q3, the highest level since late 2022, driven largely by private buyers [5].

TenantBase Activity [13]

  • Demand Share: Warehouse accounted for 24.85% of total search volume [13].
  • Lease Term Preference: Demand is well-distributed across short and mid-term options [13]:
    • 1-2 Years: 28.57% of deals [13].
    • 3-5 Years: 26.98% of deals [13].
    • 2-3 Years: 23.81% of deals [13].
  • Size Requirements: The average lower SF required for a 3-5 Years term is 5,931 SF, while the 5+ Years term average requirement jumps to 14,500 SF [13].

Retail Market

Market Overview Tampa's retail sector remains one of the tightest in the nation, driven by strong population growth and limited new inventory [6].

  • Vacancy & Availability: The vacancy rate held steady at a low 3.4% in Q3 2025 [6]. While some reports note a rise in lifestyle center vacancy, neighborhood centers remain exceptionally tight [7].
  • Net Absorption: Leasing activity surged to its highest level since 2021, though net absorption figures were mixed due to planned closures [7].
  • Rental Rates: Average asking rents increased to $29.47 per SF, reflecting strong landlord pricing power [7].
  • Construction: The pipeline remains constrained with roughly 728,000 SF under construction, ensuring vacancy stability moving forward [6].

TenantBase Activity [13]

  • Demand Share: Retail/Storefront activity dominated with 64.15% of all search volume [13].
  • Lease Term Preference: Retail tenants show a preference for stability and longer terms [13]:
    • 3-5 Years: 32.45% of deals [13].
    • 5+ Years: 22.52% of deals [13].
    • 1-2 Years: 17.88% of deals [13].
  • Top Locations: Tenant interest is distributed across the bay area (percentage of total deals) [13]:
    • St. Petersburg: 5.9% [13].
    • Tampa: 5.9% [13].
    • Sarasota: 4.1% [13].

Multifamily Market

Market Overview The multifamily sector is outperforming the broader Sun Belt region, effectively absorbing a surge of new inventory that is now beginning to taper off [8, 9].

  • Vacancy & Occupancy: Vacancy rose to 10.3% as completions outpaced demand, though this is expected to be the cyclical peak [8].
  • Rents & Concessions: Average rents softened by 1.9% year-over-year to $1,800 per month, with concessions becoming more common in lease-up projects [8]. However, rents remain 25% above 2020 levels [8].
  • Construction: Deliveries totaled 8,350 units over the past year, but starts have fallen to multi-year lows, signaling a tighter market by 2026 [8].
  • Investment: Tampa multifamily assets delivered a 6.5% return in Q3, outperforming Atlanta, Charlotte, and the national average [9].

2026 Outlook

Looking ahead to 2026, Tampa is positioned for continued stability and growth as the supply wave recedes.

  • Multifamily Rebound: With construction starts down significantly, vacancy is projected to tighten, and rent growth is expected to accelerate by early 2026 [8].
  • Industrial Balance: The slowdown in new speculative construction will allow demand to catch up with supply, stabilizing vacancy rates [5].
  • Investment Appeal: Investors remain confident in Tampa's long-term fundamentals, with 60% of private buyers driving transaction volume [5].

Sources

  1. Lee & Associates: Q3 2025 Tampa Bay Office Market Report
  2. CBRE: Tampa Office Figures Q3 2025
  3. Avison Young: Tampa Office Market Report Q3 2025
  4. CBRE: Tampa Industrial Figures Q3 2025
  5. Matthews: Tampa, FL Industrial Market Report Q3 2025
  6. Matthews: Tampa, FL Retail Market Report Q3 2025
  7. TBBW: Tampa Retail Market Hits Highest Demand Since 2021
  8. Matthews: Tampa, FL Multifamily Market Report Q3 2025
  9. TBBW: Tampa Multifamily Market Outperforms Sun Belt Q3 2025
  10. Cushman & Wakefield: U.S. Retail MarketBeat Q3 2025
  11. Cushman & Wakefield: U.S. Multifamily MarketBeat Q3 2025
  12. TBBW: Tampa Beating National Real Estate Slowdown by Nearly 20%
  13. TenantBase Proprietary Market Data (Tampa - Last 90 Days)

Information in this report is aggregated from various third-party sources and synthesized using artificial intelligence and other research tools. While we believe these sources to be reliable, we cannot guarantee the absolute accuracy or completeness of the data. This report is intended for informational purposes to provide market insight and should be independently verified prior to any use in a real estate transaction or legal commitment.