CHICAGO—High-tech users have become the most important driving force in the US office market, and the final quarter of 2017 was no exception. According to global commercial real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield, metro regions with a strong technology presence were among the year's best performers in leasing activity, vacancy level and absorption.

Nationally, new office leasing rose 9.7% year-over-year to a total of 312 million square feet, and the big core markets led the way. Manhattan came out on top with 30.5 million square feet. Dallas, with 14.6 million square feet, came in second, followed by Chicago at 11.6 million square feet, Houston at 10.4 million square feet, and Los Angeles, also with 10.4 million square feet.

But the true strength of tech was seen elsewhere. In tech-centric San Francisco, new leasing accounted for more than 8.7 million square feet of office space and represented 11.1% of that city's total inventory, the highest of any US market. After San Francisco, the top leasing markets relative to inventory include: San Mateo (11%), Seattle (10.5%), San Jose (10.4%), Nashville (10.3%), San Diego (10.1%), and Austin (9.5%). Nationwide, new leasing accounted for 5.9% of total inventory, up from 5.5% at the end of 2016.