Orange County Office Market Report

Office hub joins select group. Orange County showcases pockets of standout demand, despite vacancy increasing overall. After the pandemic period brought 2.4 million square feet to market near John Wayne Airport and adjacent zones, positive net absorption returned to the area during the 12-month span ending in June. This improvement lowered local vacancy by 10 basis points, making it one of only nine major U.S. submarkets with more than 50 million square feet of office inventory that recorded compression during this period. Furthermore, this tightening occurred amid elevated development, suggesting demand for higher-tier office space exists in the area. Since then, ongoing construction here has slowed, likely helping to facilitate demand for local existing stock — specifically for recently renovated floorplans — supporting further near-term compression.