Average pricing for office building sales turned a corner in 2025, posting the first annual gain since 2021, according to CommercialCafe, which cited Yardi Matrix data. The report found that the average sale price climbed 6.1% year-over-year, rising from $172 per square foot in 2024 to $182 per square foot in 2025. While the majority of markets remain below their 2019 benchmarks, the data indicates that many metros began to stabilize and move toward recovery over the past year.
The analysis highlighted that four of the top 25 metro areas have now exceeded their pre-pandemic office pricing levels. Miami led the group, with sale prices up 20% compared with 2019. Dallas followed with an 8.5% increase over the same period, while Detroit and Orlando posted gains of 8.4% and 5.8%, respectively. These markets stand out against a broader national backdrop in which many other office markets are still working their way back from pandemic-era value declines.
The data also underscored the importance of transaction activity in New York’s office market. Manhattan recorded more than $1 billion in office sales that closed in January 2026, putting the borough on a trajectory to extend the pace set in 2025. Last year, Manhattan saw 73 office building trades totaling nearly $7.8 billion, representing the highest number of office sales since the start of the decade. This volume suggests that, even as many markets remain below prior peaks, investors are continuing to transact in major office hubs.
The report noted one high-profile transaction as emblematic of ongoing investor interest in prime assets. Park Avenue Tower, located in Midtown Manhattan, traded in January 2026 for a reported $730 million. The sale illustrates how capital is still being deployed into well-known towers in established locations, even as many secondary and tertiary office markets remain under pressure. Together, the pricing and volume trends point to a market in which recovery is uneven but progressing, with certain metros and core assets leading the way while others lag behind pre-COVID-19 valuations.
