A version of this article first appeared in the CNBC Property Play newsletter with Diana Olick. Property Play covers new and evolving opportunities for the real estate investor, from individuals to venture capitalists, private equity funds, family offices, institutional investors and large public companies. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox. The recovery in Manhattan’s office sector is gaining steam, as demand hits levels not seen in over two decades. During the second quarter of the year, 11.02 million square feet of office leasing was signed, 29.4% above the five-year quarterly average and 31.3% above the 10-year average, according to a new report from Colliers, a commercial real estate services firm. Quarterly demand was up just over 19% year over year, and while it was down slightly from the previous quarter, it was the first time since 2002 that demand exceeded 11 million square feet for three consecutive quarters, Colliers found. For the full first half of the year, demand was the strongest in more than two decades, while supply has tightened or remained stable for the longest quarterly period in nearly 20 years, according to Colliers. Asking rents also saw the largest mid-year annual growth since 2016. “Return to office movements mixed with rising demand from key industries – such as tech/AI, legal, media and financial services – across nearly every corner of the Manhattan office market have converged and driven the very healthy demand in Q1 and Q2 2026,” said Frank Wallach, executive managing director of research and business development at Colliers, in written comments to CNBC. “Complementing this is millions of square feet of plann …
