ERES 2026 Market Overview: Eastside Vacancy Drops as Office Demand Surges

Bellevue Chamber Staff  |  April 2, 2026

The 2026 Eastside Real Estate Symposium opened with Amazon Public Policy Director, Guy Palumbo, and CBRE Senior Vice President Bryan Oliver mapping the forces reshaping the region's housing and office markets, from billions in housing investment to a commercial vacancy gap that increasingly favors the Eastside over Seattle.

HOUSING ADVOCACY & INVESTMENT

Palumbo highlighted Amazon's $3.6 billion Housing Fund, which has preserved or created 10,000 units since 2020 and increased Bellevue's affordable housing stock by 31%. He credited the Bellevue Chamber's data-driven partnership with elected officials and City staff as a driving force behind the region's housing wins, calling the organization one of the most effective in the state on housing and real estate policy. (And hey, we'll take it!)

"Having a data driven approach to accomplish shared goals is really what we're supposed to be doing every day at the state and local level. And sadly, that's not often the case ... But, Bellevue has really figured that out." — Guy Palumbo, Amazon Public Policy Director

EASTSIDE VS. SEATTLE OFFICE DYNAMICS

Oliver delivered a Q4 2025 market snapshot showing a widening gap between Seattle and Eastside office performance. Seattle's 60-million-square-foot market sits at roughly 35% vacancy, with limited demand and top-tier rents running $60 to $63 gross per square foot, whereas the Eastside, by contrast, carries about 25% vacancy with deals in progress expected to bring that closer to 20%. Bellevue CBD commands rents above $80 per square foot, and 2.4 million square feet of active requirements are in the market, driven largely by technology and AI companies.

"When you put that in perspective with just the amount of product we have here, it's a pretty healthy, active community looking for space." — Bryan Oliver, Senior Vice President, CBRE

Companies arriving from the Bay Area, accustomed to significantly higher rents, view Eastside pricing differently than local tenants, as Oliver noted that Bay Area firms looking to expand on the West Coast are not deterred by Bellevue's pricing, underscoring the market's growing draw for tech and AI companies evaluating the region.

DEVELOPMENT PIPELINE OUTLOOK

Despite strong demand, Oliver said new speculative office construction remains unlikely in the near term. Most developers require 30% to 50% pre-leasing before breaking ground, and current vacancy levels make spec projects difficult to justify.

"Over the next three years, it's unlikely any of these developers decide to go spec. Obviously a pre-lease, most of which would require 30 to 50% pre-lease on the building, that's a different conversation." — Bryan Oliver, Senior Vice President, CBRE

CBRE's updated Q1 2026 Eastside market report is expected within two to three weeks, but check out the full video from our 2026 Eastside Real Estate Symposium here!