Baltimore Retail Market Report

Tenant demand for highway-adjacent retail stands out. With only 10,000 square feet delivered since 2019, as well as near decade-high net absorption over the past year, vacancy along the Route 2 Corridor fell 150 basis points annually to 9.1 percent in June. Amid softer demographic trends in the metro, retailers have placed greater emphasis on locations near the submarket’s highway. Maryland Route 2 connects Baltimore to Annapolis — the state’s administrative capital — as well as the highly-visited western Chesapeake, aiding retailer performance. Average asking rates were the lowest among the metro’s larger submarkets, at $16.64 per square foot, enabling retailers to minimize downside risk. Although, amid nominal construction moving forward, some space demand may shift toward other submarkets with highly-trafficked thoroughfares that have higher amounts of newer and upcoming builds, like the Route 1-BWI Area.