What Commercial Real Estate Investors Need to Know for 2026

In 2025, the commercial real estate market faced complex challenges driven primarily by monetary policy adjustments, persistent inflation pressures, and evolving economic conditions. Understanding these shifting dynamics is critical for success in 2026.   

In efforts to support your success, we partnered with Trepp to analyze key data points and trends from 2025, enabling us to examine the connection between macroeconomic forces and the CRE market. In the report, you will find data-driven insights on the labor market, goods inflation, AI-driven investment patterns, and sector-specific challenges. This report identifies key trends across capital markets, property types, and valuation shifts, providing actionable insights to enhance decision-making in 2026.  

Throughout our report, you’ll be able to find answers to key questions, such as:  

• What will the success of 2026 hinge on?  
• How is AI impacting CRE?  
• What are current sales and valuation trends?  
• How did the CRE sales market perform in 2025?  
• What is the current lender appetite?
• And much more.  

The information below is just a preview of what you’ll find. Sign up using the form below to receive an ungated copy of the report when it’s released.  

A Closer Look at the Report 

Macroeconomic Review 

Amid market uncertainty, economic growth remained uneven but steady, with some sectors expanding rapidly while others grew more slowly. Labor shortages across industries, such as construction and hospitality, continued, thereby fueling wage pressures.  

In 2025, the rate pattern transitioned to a U-shaped profile, signaling a downward slope from short- to intermediate-term yields and highlighting the tension between an immediate slowdown and longer-term risks.  

Capital Market Review

The current market status reflects key priorities: capital flows first to large, transparent, stabilized assets and strong sponsorship. By examining annual securitized originations by deal type, it’s evident that most investors’ needs align with the key priorities, while broader access channels that underwrite more median assets remain constrained.  

Monthly securitization delinquency rates by deal type showed that in October 2025, Conduit CMBS delinquency climbed to 8.36%, the highest level since the pandemic. This widening gap between agency and non-agency executions highlights how structural protections influence performance as liquidity tightens and maturities increase. 

Property Type Review 

Commercial real estate performance was affected by macroeconomic trends and property-specific pressures. Driven by e-commerce and AI data centers, industrial demand remained strong; offices continued to absorb the remote-work shock, and trophy assets are outperforming. Multifamily shows a split between regulated-aging stocks and newer assets; lodging has stabilized, indicating a full recovery for full-service properties, and retail strength is anchored by superregional malls with luxury storefronts. 

Sales & Valuation Review 

Overall, U.S. sales volume declined relative to prior annual averages. Driven by uncertainty of future income and rising financing costs, cap rates expanded across all sectors. These sector-specific trends represent the imperative need to understand how patterns shape pricing and investor strategy. Within, charts highlight national CRE sales statistics and regional sales data for the industrial, lodging, multifamily, office, and retail sectors across key geographies.  

Navigating 2026 with Confidence

 As we enter 2026, it’s important to look back at 2025’s commercial real estate trends to act proactively, enhance decision-making, and build a data-driven portfolio for maximum success. We hope that our research helps you confidently navigate the ever-changing, complex commercial real estate landscape. 

Sign up to receive a copy of the full report and gain the insights you need to make informed decisions in 2026.