Supply
Orlando's vacancy rate was 8.7% at the close of Q3, up 50 basis points (bps) year-over-year (YOY). The recent increase was primarily driven by the Airport/Lake Nona and Orlando Central Park submarkets, where vacancy rose 360 and 340 bps YOY, respectively. Of the nearly 1.9 million square feet (msf) that delivered year-to-date (YTD), only 23.7% was preleased, of which 116,000 square feet (sf) is occupied by a combination of PHD Games and Native Vanilla at 2551 McCraken Road. Key projects that broke ground in 2026 include the VenturePark Beachline II & III buildings, totaling nearly 748,000 sf, and the 675,000-sf Mahogany Pointe Logistics Park, both in the Airport/Lake Nona submarket. All new deliveries were Warehouse/Distribution assets, as developers remained bullish on industrial development in Central Florida, which has the most projects underway in the state. Nearly 3.7 msf is currently under construction with only 1.7% preleased, the development pipeline will continue to elevate vacancy in upcoming quarters.
Demand
2026 YTD leasing activity totaled 4.0 msf, down 40.3% YOY, marking the slowest midyear pace of deals signed in six years, which can be attributed to the slowing of big-box demand. The first half of 2025 included outliers such as the 1.2 msf Ryder deal, which was occupied in the third quarter of 2025, contributing to the stark difference in deals signed YOY. Overall occupancy gains totaled 126,700 sf in Q3, bringing net absorption over 680,000 sf YTD. This total was significantly down from the same period in 2025 and can be attributed to the aforementioned Ryder occupancy. The Silver Star/Apopka submarket dominated YTD absorbed space with a 64.7% share of the YTD total, headlined by Ponderosa Wood occupying 136,000 sf in Q3 and Gaston Tree Debris occupying 112,000 sf in Q1. This stands out because other submarkets were weighed down by large moveouts despite strong activity.
Market Pricing
Overall asking rents are rebounding up 6.8% YOY to $9.88 per-square-foot (psf) after peaking in 2nd half of 2023 at $10.34psf. Rent growth in Orlando has been supported by the market’s strong industrial inventory growth resulting from continued population growth, an expanding consumer base and strategic location within Central Florida’s logistics network. These factors continued to attract distribution and manufacturing users. Manufacturing asking rents have grown 9.3% YOY to $12.29 psf, leading all asset types. Sales activity has been strong as well with over 3.4 msf of sales activity YTD, almost exceeding 2025’s 3.7 msf of activity through Q3 2025.
