Big‑box leasing jumps 31%
Warehousing demand spiked: Cushman & Wakefield data — shared on social — shows leases for facilities over 500,000 SF rose about 31% year‑over‑year, signaling renewed appetite for large-format logistics real estate reported. That surge suggests institutional tenants and 3PLs are chasing scale again — pressure that tight markets like the Inland Empire will feel first.
Cushman & Wakefield reported)) 113 million square feet of net absorption tied to newer, larger warehouses in 2025, which the firm said represented 64% of total U.S. industrial absorption. The same Cushman analysis noted)) build‑to‑suit activity rose 11% in 2025 and that roughly one‑fifth of leases above 500,000 SF were tied to build‑to‑suit projects. Cushman flagged)) a 140‑basis‑point year‑over‑year decline in vacancy for large warehouses and recorded 36.7 million square feet of user‑purchase activity in 2025. Cushman listed)) a late‑quarter flurry that produced 11 deals larger than 1 million square feet across markets including Atlanta, Houston, Chicago, New Jersey and Dallas‑Fort Worth. CBRE reported)) that the Inland Empire accounted for 14 of the 100 largest U.S. industrial leases in 2025, totaling about 11.8 million square feet. Regional research from Kidder Mathews shows)) Inland Empire direct vacancy at roughly 7.2% in late‑2025 with average asking rents near $1.00 PSF/month NNN, a decline of about 10.7% year‑over‑year. Cushman found)) cost sensitivity driving market selection: 71% of 104 large leases in 2025 were in markets below the national average rent and nearly two‑thirds were at least 20% cheaper than the U.S. average.
