Mid-Atlantic Research Reflections 2024: Nonprofits

Greater Washington is home to a wide range of nonprofit organizations, including mission-based and charitable organizations, think tanks, and trade associations. Proximity to grant-making federal agencies and Congress make D.C. a great location for advocacy and lobbying efforts, and access to D.C.’s skilled workforce is beneficial for recruitment purposes.

Through November, nonprofits have leased 1.0 million sq. ft. of office space across the region. This puts the sector on pace to exceed 2023 levels; however this is still 30% below long-term average leasing levels in the sector. Activity was concentrated in the District, where 672,000 sq. ft. has been leased by nonprofits year-to-date. Nonprofits opt to relocate more often than other sectors as they look to downsize space but upgrade the office experience for staff. In 2024, 62% of nonprofit leases were relocations compared to 52% in other sectors.

Nonprofits are one of the few industries posting positive absorption in 2024, recording 131,000 sq. ft. of occupancy gain across the region through the end of the third quarter. This marks the second year in a row that nonprofits are gaining occupancy in the District, but the first since the onset of the pandemic that nonprofits throughout the entire region are showing positive absorption.