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REVIVE: Exploring What's Making Greater Washington Vibrant

A partnership with the Washington Business Journal

Want to Keep Up With the Pace of the Region?

REVIVE, our proprietary index of Greater Washington activity, supports regional leaders in navigating these complex and challenging times.

The index empowers businesses to monitor and forecast the scale of change in the region as the way we live, work and play changes over time. We have partnered with the Washington Business Journal to publish the results of the REVIVE index helping Greater Washington plan for a dynamic and resilient future.

Greater Washington’s REVIVE Index Reaches Highest Six-Month Average Since 2019, Despite Monthly Decline

The Greater Washington REVIVE Index declined 2.0% from the previous month, reflecting data primarily through August. The decline suggests that higher interest rates may be starting to weigh on the region’s vibrancy, as early signs of softer commercial real estate investment activity emerge. Even so, the pullback was only the second monthly decline since November 2025, and the region’s broader trajectory remains positive. The six-month rolling average of the REVIVE Index reached its highest level since 2019, underscoring continued improvement in regional vibrancy.

Three factors primarily drove the monthly decline:

  1. Sluggish real estate investment activity

    The investment environment remains challenging as investors adjust to higher interest rates. Both the Commercial Real Estate and Residential Real Estate sub-indices declined as investment-related indicators weakened, although underlying demand for space remains healthy.

  2. Federal government employment and contract activity softened

    Recent gains in federal government employment were reversed in the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Federal contract awards in Greater Washington also declined from the previous month, although they continue to trend higher overall in 2026. As a result, the Federal Government sub-index fell 6.7%, marking its steepest monthly decline since January.

  3. Seasonal moderation in mobility and visitation

    Some moderation in hotel occupancy, Metro ridership and overall mobility is typical during the late summer months. Despite this seasonal effect, underlying activity remained strong. July hotel occupancy posted its largest year-over-year increase in more than a decade, while Metro ridership also increased compared with a year earlier.

    4. Despite the monthly decline, the six-month rolling average of the REVIVE Index, which smooths month-to-month volatility and better captures underlying trends, reached its highest level since 2019. As Greater Washington continues to recover from the sharp federal government contraction of 2025, progress in 2026 has been supported by strong demand for commercial and residential space, a healthier labor market, record levels of mobility and visitation and the stabilization of federal government employment and contracting activity.

REVIVE Index Archive

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