CBRE said Richmond industrial vacancy climbed to 5.6% in Q1 2026 from 3.5% a year earlier, with absorption turning negative as more space came online than tenants leased.
More than 1.4 million square feet was completed during the quarter, helping drive the cooldown even as brokers said demand remains steady and some tenants are delaying decisions amid economic uncertainty.
Nearly 11.5 million square feet is still under construction—almost four times last year's level—and about three-quarters of that pipeline is already preleased, including major Amazon and LEGO projects.
Large first-quarter leases from Rosendin Electric, DPR Construction, Gaylor Electric and Dematic pointed to demand from manufacturing, construction and logistics rather than a single tenant segment.
With roughly 45% of the U.S. population reachable within a day's drive, Richmond is shifting from a space shortage to a test of how quickly millions of new warehouses and factories can be filled.