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Commercial real estate activity expected to rise in 2026 amid return-to-office trends
Two-thirds of surveyed professionals expect office leasing demand to rise or hold steady as return-to-office mandates increase, despite slower industrial sector growth due to trade issues.
- Royal LePage's 2026 report finds office leasing will increase this year as two-thirds of surveyed commercial real estate market professionals expect demand to modestly rise or stay steady, with five per cent predicting significant growth.
- Return-to-Office mandates are driving increased leasing as many firms backtrack on hybrid models, with tech giants and financial firms mandating full or partial returns this year.
- Across major Canadian markets, downtown Toronto posted the lowest vacancy at 2.1 per cent in 2025, while the Montreal region had the highest at 5.2 per cent.
- Despite trade and tariffs risks, the report says industrial real estate is expected to remain one of Canada's strongest-performing asset classes in 2026, with demand remaining strong, Jacques noted.
- Manufacturing and trade trends suggest around 47 per cent of survey respondents expect industrial space demand to increase in 2026, despite last year’s 0.4 per cent dip in manufacturing sales, driven by losses in petroleum, coal and chemical industries.
13 Articles
13 Articles
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What does the corporate workplace look like in 2026? Following the Covid-19 pandemic, many employers implemented flexible schedules, which allowed employees to work from home for some or all of their week. Many firms are now backtracking, saying that even a hybrid model is no longer suitable. Some of the major employers who are mandating a full or partial return to the office include tech giants, as well as financial firms. For more, we speak to…
Commercial real estate activity expected to rise in 2026 amid return-to-office trends
A new report says commercial real estate activity is expected to pick up this year in part due to return-to-office mandates, however momentum within the industrial sector has softened amid ongoing trade disruptions.
Commercial forecast: Strong downtown office leasing meets softer industrial market
Canada’s office and industrial real estate markets are entering 2026 on steadier ground, after several turbulent years caused by the pandemic, remote work and global trade disruptions. A new report from Royal LePage Commercial says the commercial market continues to evolve to match how and where businesses operate. Industrial activity has cooled in many markets amid tariff uncertainty and broader economic concerns, while office leasing is gradua…
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- 67% of the sources are Center
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