NORWALK – Total office availability across the four submarkets of lower Fairfield County decreased by 1.7 percentage points, from 29.7% at year-end 2024 to 28% at year-end 2025, according to commercial real estate brokerage Choyce Peterson.
At the close of 2025, a total of 4,736,020 square feet of space was available: 4,315,154 square feet (91.1%) of direct space and 420,866 square feet (8.9%) of sublease space, according to the Choyce Peterson semi-annual market survey released Jan. 20.
“Remarkably, for the first time in a decade all four submarkets recorded a decline in year over year availability,” said John Hannigan, co-founder and principal of Choyce Peterson.
“However, it continues to be a tale of two vastly different markets. Greenwich and Westport are super tight with availabilities below 14%.”
The report analyzes 93 predominantly multi-tenant Class A office buildings totaling 16.9 million square feet across Stamford, Norwalk, Greenwich, and Westport, tracking changes in availability from year end.
Presented through Choyce Peterson’s signature visual format, the report highlights building-by-building changes in direct and sublease space, illustrating leasing absorption, new space added to the market and overall availability trends throughout Lower Fairfield County.
Submarket availability by municipality
- Stamford decreased from 30.5% to 29.5%. The most significant leasing activity occurred at 400 Atlantic St., 333 Ludlow St. and 201 Tresser Boulevard, which combined absorbed 162,459 square feet. The largest increase in available space was at 300 Atlantic St., 107 Elm St. and 3001- 3003 Summer St., which in total added 151,225 square feet to the market. Given the overall drop in Stamford’s availability, only one building – 677 Washington Boulevard – is fully occupied as the remaining Stamford buildings in the survey all post available space.
- Norwalk decreased from 44.3% to 41.2%. Of the 17 buildings surveyed, 11 buildings showed a decrease in availability totaling 225,303 square feet (primarily concentrated in 501 and 601 Merritt 7), while only two showed an increase totaling 50,166 square feet (200 Connecticut Ave. and 401 Merritt 7). With the highest overall availability rate in the survey, it is notable that Norwalk has the second lowest amount of space available for sublease.
- Greenwich decreased from 15.0% to 13.7%. Leasing activity was mainly concentrated at 5 Greenwich Office Park, 3 Pickwick Plaza, and 55 Railroad Ave., accounting for 71,580 square feet of absorption. Two buildings added 41,989 square feet to the market: 1700 E Putnam Ave. and 411 W Putnam Ave. Of the 25 Class A buildings surveyed in the Greenwich market, 10 buildings show no available space and only five have more than 25,000 square feet available.
- Westport decreased from 12.2% to 11.9%. Most of the leasing activity was concentrated at 57 Greens Farms Road with 18,450 square feet taken off the market. The vast majority of Westport’s new availability for the year was posted in three buildings: 315 Post Road W., 285 Riverside Ave. and 355 Riverside Ave. Of the 21 Class A buildings surveyed in the Westport market, 10 buildings show no available space and only two have more than 25,000 square feet available.
Available space is tight
As an example, of the 46 buildings surveyed in these two towns, only seven have 25,000 square feet or more of available office space. Contrastingly, in Stamford (29.5% availability) and Norwalk (41.2% availability) with substantially larger buildings, there is an abundance of space on the market. To illustrate, of the 47 buildings surveyed in these two cities, 33 have 25,000 square feet or more of available space.”
“Over the past year, more than 1.2 million square feet of Class A office space has been removed from the survey as owners secure approvals for adaptive reuse projects including residential, senior living, and health or recreational uses,” Hannigan said. “We anticipate this trend will continue in 2026 as additional properties are phased out of the office inventory. Several buildings remain in a transitional phase as the owners determine the future use of the building (i.e. office versus residential), limiting tenants’ ability to renew on a long-term basis and leading some occupants to vacate at lease expiration.”
In contrast, well-capitalized Class A landlords continue to invest in their assets, upgrading amenities and common areas to enhance competitiveness and support tenant retention, Hannigan added.
Charlene O’Connell, vice president at Choyce Peterson noted that for the first time in a decade, total available sublease space is below 450,000 square feet.
“Over the past 10 years, sublease space has declined from a peak of 1,841,091 square feet in 2021 (31.8% of total availability) to a mere 420,866 square feet (8.9% of total availability) at year-end 2025,” she said. “This shift primarily reflects the expiration of sublease availabilities that have since reverted to direct space.”
