Q1: SF availability falls 2M sf
San Francisco’s availability dropped by roughly 2 million square feet in Q1 as large tenants hunt for 100K+ blocks — listing activity shows 28 firms seeking massive footprints and vacancy slipping toward ~30–31%. The shift signals tightening at the high end even while overall vacancy remains elevated. ( )
CoStar described the most recent quarterly move as the largest single-quarter decrease in availability within a four-quarter streak of tightening in San Francisco’s office market. (costar.com) Savills’ Q1 market note shows 3.8 million square feet of leasing activity at the start of 2026, attributing the surge to AI and advanced-technology firms including OpenAI, Databricks and Anthropic. (research.euro.savills.co.uk) VTS projected San Francisco leasing will hit roughly 12.8 million square feet in 2026, and a regional report flagged roughly 1.8 million square feet of net absorption during Q1, underlining demand momentum behind the availability shift. (commercialobserver.com) Notable large-block moves this cycle include Anthropic’s deal for roughly 420,000 square feet at 300 Howard, Notion’s roughly 105,000-square-foot lease at 685 Market, and landlord confirmations around a ~450,000-square-foot OpenAI campus in Mountain View. (nationaltoday.com) Market-beat metrics remain uneven: Avison Young recorded total availability near the mid-30s percentage range at the end of 2025, while some coverage citing CoStar put the city’s share of empty-or-for-lease office stock in the mid-20s depending on the calculation. (avisonyoung.us) Local coverage and broker notes show the tightening concentrated in premium, amenitized CBD product and move-in-ready blocks while sublease inventories and secondary assets continue to lag, according to Bisnow and Avison Young commentary. (bisnow.com) Cushman’s prior market data logged hundreds of active tenant requirements—284 requirements totaling about 6.4 million square feet in an earlier period—highlighting an elevated pipeline of large-block searches that dealers and listing owners are actively tracking. (assets.cushmanwakefield.com)
