Demand expands from the city to adjacent sub-markets
Contrary to expectations, the weak development of the Leipzig office market in 2025 has continued this year. In the first half of 2026, take-up of 31,400 m² remained around 20 per cent below the previous year’s figure (37,400 m²), which was already below average. The weak performance becomes clear in a long-term comparison: the five-year average is 58,300 m² of take-up.
“We are currently observing a change in the dynamics of leasing processes: Many decisions take significantly more time, and in some cases projects are paused or postponed. The main reason lies in the strategic realignment of many companies. In times of remote working and increased use of AI, they are intensively evaluating their actual space requirements,” says Anja Schuhmann, Branch Manager JLL Berlin and Leipzig, describing the current situation.
As in the other metropolises, demand is aimed at modern, certified space in central locations, of which there is comparatively little in Leipzig. In the top segment, this led to a year-on-year increase in prime rents of 0.50 euros/m² to 21.50 euros/m². “However, many Leipzig office users are price-sensitive. The top segment has become too expensive for them,” adds Schuhmann. As a result, most deals are now registered outside the city, such as in the West, Graphic Quarter and Outer City Ring submarkets.
With take-up, market activity has also declined significantly. In the first six months of 2026, only 69 leases were counted – around 30 percent fewer than the average of the past five first half of the year. Three-quarters of the deals were smaller than 500 m² and only five made it over the 1,000 m² mark. The largest lease was provided by the State Office for Schools and Education, which secured an area of 5,400 m² in the Quadriga Business Park, Nonnenstraße 37-39.
The vacancy rate has risen from 4.8 percent to six percent year-on-year. In the future, however, it is likely to stabilize, as hardly any new space is coming onto the market. In addition, according to Schuhmann , “many owners have accepted the changed market situation and understand that investments in user-friendly, needs-based office space are essential today.” Due to the requests in the market – including some larger ones – Schuhmann expects a better letting result in the second half of the year. For the year as a whole, it forecasts take-up of around 80,000 m².
