The Department of Government Efficiency has slowed its pace of federal office lease reductions. In March, the amount cut was down significantly from February, according to Trepp.
The firm determined that the General Services Administration now leases 503,161 fewer square feet of leased office space compared with February, cutting an additional $11.5 million of net annual rent. That leaves the federal government’s annual rent expenditure at $5.23 billion.
Trepp said that there was “selective expansion” in MSAs such as New York, San Diego, and Washington, D.C. However, there was also an increased 2025 termination risk in some areas. There was also a consolidation of square footage in D.C., New York, and Philadelphia.
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Trepp’s February report showed a drop of 8.5 million square feet and 109 fewer properties, cutting $318.5 million in annual rent. At that point, more than 30% of the remaining leased federal office space and more than 27.5% of annual rent were available to cut.
Trepp said that January data showed “minimal impact” from the administration’s cost-cutting plans. That isn’t surprising, as President Donald Trump didn’t re-take office until January 20.
Some number of the building leases are expected to close by June 30, according to an internal government document. Lease terminations do not mean all locations will close, as some agencies may negotiate new leases to stay in place, downsize, or relocate, according to the report.
There was some news of additional cuts during March. As of March 26, according to the Denver Gazette, the government had terminated leases of nearly 750 federal offices across the country. According to DOGE, nearly 10 million square feet of government real estate was listed as either cancelled or modified, as of February 25.
But trying to understand the current nature is difficult. GlobeSt.com downloaded the most recent data from the DOGE site on April 21. It claimed 643 lease terminations with a total of about $311 million in savings. It doesn’t describe whether the savings are annual over a certain number of years, estimated at a one-time cost basis, or a mix between the two. As of March 26, according to Newsweek, the agency claimed 679 lease terminations and more than $400 million in savings, making it sound that the figures were restated downward.
Fierce Biotech looked at the list on March 24 and said that DOGE had revised savings estimates then, which was “nearly halving the unit’s initial forecast.”
According to the Trepp data, the March cuts were just under 6% of the February ones. The dollar savings in March were 3.6% of the size in February.
As of April 21, only a dozen additional reductions had been performed in April, with only half showing savings totaling $4.80 million.
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