Suburban Maryland Office Figures Q4 2025

The Suburban Maryland office market concluded 2025 with a notable slowdown in activity. The fourth quarter saw leasing activity fall short of the preceding quarters, securing 200,000 sq. ft. less than the average of the first three quarters. Despite this decline in leasing, a concurrent reduction in tenant move-outs and downsizing mitigated further losses. The market experienced a modest 6,051 sq. ft. of occupancy loss in Q4, bringing annual net absorption to negative 212,154 sq. ft. Consequently, the year-end vacancy rate settled at 21.8%.

During the first half of 2025, DOGE’s efforts to consolidate the office footprints of several federal agencies and to cut various government contracts resulted in the shedding of office space in Suburban Maryland, by both federal government tenants and government contractor tenants. While the pace of consolidations slowed during the second half of the year, annual absorption remains negative. The largest contraction of the fourth quarter was Solventum, which will leave 71,500 sq. ft. at 12215 Plum Orchard Drive in Silver Spring. The healthcare company has not made any public announcements about their next move; however, their parent company 3M has an office presence in Washington D.C.