Orlando’s office market is not exactly roaring, but behind the soft headlines, a quiet reshuffle is underway. Big occupiers and owner-users are grabbing some of the best space in town, even while the broader numbers still look sluggish. How quickly that pockets-of-demand story spreads will determine whether 2026 turns into a real turning point for landlords and investors.
Annual rent growth in Orlando slowed to 1.3% as of the first quarter of 2026, which puts the metro near the bottom of Florida’s major markets, according to CoStar. CoStar notes that the metro-wide figure hides stronger rent gains in top-tier buildings, where most of the recent leasing has been concentrated. Local brokers say those wins in select properties, not broad-based rent inflation, are what is currently steering market sentiment.
Vacancy And Sublease Pressure
Vacancy and sublease availability remain the main drag on the market even as asking rents in certain pockets edge higher. CBRE reports that Orlando’s vacancy climbed to about 17% in late 2025 as companies right-sized or shuffled their footprints. That backdrop has owners of older, more commoditized buildings competing aggressively on price and concessions, while Class A properties pull in most of the leasing activity. The split has led many developers to pause speculative office projects and rethink what kind of product they are willing to bring out of the ground next.
Major Moves Are Tightening Class A Supply
Corporate relocations and owner-occupier purchases are quietly stripping large blocks of high-end space out of the traditional leasing pool. Travel + Leisure announced a downtown headquarters move that will consolidate hundreds of jobs in the urban core, according to a Travel + Leisure Co. press release. In the Maitland submarket, Charles Schwab’s recent acquisitions have converted roughly half a million square feet of Class A space into owner-occupied holdings, according to Foundry Commercial. For tenants that want premium space, the pickings are getting noticeably slimmer.
Flight To Quality Shaping Deals
Brokers describe a clear flight-to-quality trend. Tenants are favoring modern floorplates, amenities, and flexibility, which leaves older buildings to compete mostly on price. JLL and other market reports have pointed to rent gains and pockets of positive absorption in higher-end submarkets like Maitland and Lake Mary, even while the broader metro holds relatively flat, according to GlobeSt. That divergence is giving landlords with well-amenitized, top-tier products more leverage at the negotiating table, despite an overall soft market.
What To Watch In 2026
Several variables will decide whether those micro-market wins turn into a broader recovery. The pace at which sublease space is absorbed or returned to the market, any further wave of owner-occupier conversions, and shifting interest-rate and lending conditions will all influence leasing decisions and new development. Colliers’ Central Florida reporting shows selective improvement in absorption along with a sharply reduced speculative construction pipeline, a combination that could tighten availability for top-tier space if current demand holds, according to Colliers. If that plays out, Class A landlords are likely to feel the relief first…