Reichle Klein Group’s 2025 Mid-Year Office Market Overview

The mid-year 2025 Reichle Klein Group survey of the Toledo, Ohio office space market found some glimmers of positive news and helped solidify the sense that the bottom has been reached. Among the highlights in the core metrics, vacancies declined slightly from year-end 2024 as the market absorbed 30,090 square feet of space in the first half of 2025. Meanwhile, the average asking rental rate for the overall market was flat over the first six months of the year.

The standout performers among the submarkets were the Central Business District where the vacancy rate declined from 29.4% in December 2024 to 28.1% in June 2025 and the Perrysburg/Northwood submarket where the vacancy rate declined from 7.2% to 5.8% over the same period. The CBD recorded 70,984 square feet of positive absorption while Perrysburg/Northwood absorbed 10,855 square feet of space.

Gains downtown and in Perrysburg were nearly offset by negative slides in the South/Southwest and West Toledo/Sylvania submarkets. Maumee in the South/Southwest submarket took the biggest hit with the relocation of Therma Tru to Chicago which left two entire buildings vacant in an area that had been experiencing a nice post-covid rebound.

The downtown submarket was the big story in the first half lead by leasing in the former Jefferson Center, now known as Innovation Post. Several new tenants relocated to the building, most all coming from suburban locations.

Beyond the metrics, we can report that leasing activity has picked up markedly since late 2024. The overarching theme is a flight to quality. Tenants are taking advantage of market conditions to upgrade space and most of the activity is focused on Class A buildings. There seems to be a greater level of certainty about the future need for space and a drive to get employees back to the office. Companies that have been putting off decisions on space for fear of commitment are choosing to move forward. The CBD is seen as attractive to hiring and retention of talent by many of these firms. Owner occupier buyer sales, in both the downtown and in suburban areas, have continued to play a role in the market.

New construction is not occurring anywhere in the market. However, a remarkably high number of tax credit projects were awarded in the recent cycle for properties in the downtown area, suggesting that some additional inventory may be coming in the form of mixed-use redevelopment.