Portland companies expand downtown as vacancies drop

Office vacancy rates in downtown Portland are down for the first time in nearly three years — dropping from 33% in the last quarter of 2025 to 31.9% in the first of 2026 — according to data from real estate firm Kidder Matthews.

The big picture: This is welcome news for the city's urban core, which has struggled to lure workers and foot traffic back since the pandemic.

• Even a modest dip in vacancy suggests downtown may be inching toward stabilization, the report notes. The figures track availability, which includes both vacant and marketed space.

The latest: UpStart Collective, PwC, Bank of America, marketing firm Finn Partners and Portland City Grill are among the latest companies to recommit to — or expand their spaces — downtown, per Portland Business Journal.

• Plus: Jeff Swickard of Swickard Group recently upped his investment in downtown to $125 million with the purchases of Big Pink, the Five Oak Building and now the Black Box Building at 200 Southwest Market Street.

Yes, but: Office vacancy rates remain far above pre-2020 levels and the current nationwide average, underscoring how long the road back could be — if a full return is even in the cards in our new hybrid-work era.

• For example, downtown Portland held a 10.4% office vacancy rate in the fourth quarter of 2019, which was considered high at the time.