March 2026 Newsletter – Market Update, CRE Alliance Group Announcement and QSAC Case Study
The Manhattan market remains strong in the first two months of 2026, but has cooled after an incredibly active 2025. Availability currently sits around 13.6%, marking a slight uptick in February 2026 after two years of consecutive declines.
Overall rents reached $78.37/SF in early 2026, the highest since August 2020. In elite corridors like Park Avenue and Hudson Yards, prime rents are approaching or exceeding $250/SF. February leasing activity totaled 2.23M SF, down nearly 30% year-over-year, as many large occupiers have already secured their long-term footprints.
Submarket Performance
| Submarket | Availability | Notable Trend |
| Midtown | ~13% | Trophy assets are extremely tight; direct availability in some premier assets has dropped to as low as 3.7%. |
| Midtown South | 13.3% | Historically tight due to Tech/TAMI demand; however, Class A vacancy recently spiked as some large blocks hit the market. |
| Lower Manhattan | 16.3% | Seeing a resurgence in demand from tenants priced out of Midtown; recorded its strongest quarterly leasing since 2019 at the end of last year. |
We are pleased to announce that Armano Real Estate has joined the prestigious CRE Alliance Group, an elite broker network in New York City.
Membership in this group expands our resources and capabilities ensuring we continue to deliver best in class services to our clients.
We are also excited to announce the recent closing of a second post-COVID lease extension for Quality Services for Autistic Children (QSAC).
We are incredibly proud of having delivered 24% occupancy cost savings, after free rent, in a strong market. These savings will help QSAC fund programs and services for the benefit of special needs kids.
