Strong industrial leasing and spec development define Q3 2025
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Oct. 15, 2025 — Moving into the fourth quarter of 2025, the Chicago market is experiencing robust industrial leasing activity and a resurgence in speculative development. Here are key industrial trends from Q3 2025 research reports:
- While build-to-suit development recently dominated the construction pipeline, speculative construction now accounts for 51 percent of the industrial development that is under construction.
- A breakdown of Chicago’s industrial leasing activity showed businesses absorbing 8.3 million square feet of industrial space in the third quarter, according to Colliers’ research. This includes multiple build-to-suit projects that accounted for 60 percent of the total.
- Industrial vacancy reached 4.6 percent in the third quarter, down from 4.88 percent a year ago.
- The overall asking lease rate was $8.35 in the third quarter, up from $8.11 a year ago.
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