Greater Toronto Area
Office market report
Second Quarter 2022
Availability of space in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) office market held steady in the second quarter of 2022, after the rapid rate of increase seen during the pandemic had begun to level off in recent quarters.
The market remains active as a greater range of available options offers tenants the chance to explore alternatives that best suit their evolving needs, amid the ongoing changes in workplace strategy sparked by the pandemic.
Quick stats
8.3%
Overall downtown office vacancy rate – up from 2.1% in first-quarter 2020
191
GTA buildings with more than 50,000 sf available – up from 186 one quarter earlier
6.3 msf
GTA-wide available sublet space – up 1% quarter-over-quarter
24%
Downtown sublet space as a proportion of total available space vs. 19% in the suburbs
8.2 msf
GTA-wide office area under construction – equal to 4% of existing inventory
The GTA office market continues to be characterized by sound fundamentals, as availability remained flat at 15.5% quarter-over-quarter while vacancy notched up 80 basis points (bps) to 10%. For the third straight quarter, absorption was in positive territory (following six negative quarters during the pandemic) as occupied area increased by 443,000 square feet (sf) across the GTA, with gains in the Downtown market offset by losses in Midtown and the suburbs.
94
Full floors available for lease downtown, out of 264 under construction
9
New office building completions across the GTA year-to-date in 2022, totaling nearly 1.2 msf
1%
Suburban office area under construction as a proportion of suburban inventory vs. 9% downtown
GTA Sublet Availability - All Classes
GTA Occupancy Costs - All Classes
As with the GTA overall, the availability rate remained flat quarter-over-quarter in the Downtown Toronto market, staying at 14.1%. This represents an increase of 130 bps year-over-year.
Vacancy continued to edge upward, rising 30 bps to 8.3% during the second quarter – despite positive absorption of more than 1.5 msf, by far the market’s best result since before the pandemic.
GTA Overall Availability & Vacancy Trends
GTA Overall Absorption Trends
GTA Overall New Supply Trends
Two buildings totaling nearly 121,000 sf were completed downtown during the second quarter
– for a first-half 2022 total of almost 1.1 msf. The amount of space under construction continued to decline as projects were completed and no new developments broke ground during the quarter. At mid-year, nearly 6.9 msf of space was underway (67% preleased), almost all (5.3 msf) slated for completion in 2022 and 2023.
Steven Preston Research Manager, Downtown Toronto steven.preston@avisonyoung.com +1 416.673.4010
Warren D'Souza Research Manager,
Suburban Markets warren.dsouza@avisonyoung.com +1 905.283.2331
Charles Torzsok Senior Research Analyst,
GTA Suburban Markets charles.torzsok@avisonyoung.com +1 905.968.8023
Charlotte Ishoj
Research & Administration Coordinator charlotte.ishoj@avisonyoung.com +1 647.252.4099
© 2021 Avison Young Commercial Real Estate Services, LP, Brokerage.
E. & O.E.: The information contained herein was obtained from sources which we deem reliable and, while thought to be correct, is not guaranteed by Avison Young. Acknowledgment: Data for graphs, charts and tables used in this report are sourced from Avison Young, Altus InSite and Realnet. Some of the data in this report has been gathered from third party sources and has not been independently verified by Avison Young. Avison Young makes no warranties or representations as to the completeness or accuracy thereof.
