The Downtown Los Angeles office market has yet to find its footing after the pandemic. In the third quarter, the office vacancy rate climbed to 25%, up 300 basis points from the third quarter 2020, according to research from Cushman & Wakefield.

As a result of remote work, 225,342 square feet of office space was vacated in the third quarter, a massive contributor to the increased vacancy rate. There was a paltry 163,924 square feet of leasing activity, but it did offset the move outs, resulting in negative 83,972 square feet of absorption. For the year, the market has negative 749,000 square feet of absorption. Despite the sluggish leasing activity, office rents increased to $45.96 per square foot.

The CBD is fairing somewhat better. The submarket has a 23.3% vacancy rate, a 160 basis point increase from the following year and only 50 basis point increase from the previous quarter. Leasing activity is down 30% year-over-year, but it is still down significantly from pre-pandemic activity. There was only one major lease deal above 50,000 square feet during the quarter, Executive Office for Immigration Review renewed its 77,678-square-foot, multi-floor lease at the City National Bank Building. For new leases, InStride signed a 23,234-square-foot lease at The