Second Quarter 2025 Trends

First Look: L.A. County Industrial Market Cools as Vacancies Rise and Rents Decline in Q2 2025

Cooling sales and leasing activity reflects evolving demand, driving the market toward stabilization.

Vacancy rates climb to 6.2%, rents drop to $1.44 per square foot, and construction slows as landlords adapt to a tenant-favorable market.

Goodman Commerce Center Long Beach, Building One—a 504,810 SF state-of-the-art warehouse on 23.91 acres—delivered vacant in Q2 2025.
 
Managing Director of Research and Public Relations at NAI Capital Commercial
 
In Q2 2025, the industrial space vacancy rate in L.A. County rose to 6.2%, based on preliminary data, marking a 90-basis-point increase year-over-year and a 30-basis-point rise from Q1 2025. Over the first half of the year, the market added approximately 1.4 million square feet of completed construction, while net absorption was negative 2.3 million square feet, extending a trend that underscores the industrial market’s shifting trajectory.
 
As a result, the volume of completed construction rose 158.8% quarter-over-quarter but remained down 32.7% year-to-date compared to mid-year 2024. Over the past six months, developers pushed to complete warehouse projects already in the pipeline to capture waning demand initially driven by e-commerce. With more projects reaching completion, the amount of industrial space under construction declined 37.2% year-over-year and 22.3% from the prior quarter.
 

Rent growth, once the primary driver of new construction, has continued its descent from the Q2 2023 peak. The average asking rent dropped 5.9% year-over-year to $1.44 per square foot triple net, down 2.7% from Q1 2025 and 20.0% below the Q2 2023 peak. Landlords are pivoting strategies to spur tenant demand, as tenants now have more negotiation leverage.

Sales volume fell 34.1% quarter-over-quarter but rose 5.9% year-to-date compared to the second half of last year, totaling approximately 7.7 million square feet by the end of Q2 2025. The median sale price per square foot declined 7.3% from the previous quarter to $271, down 10.2% year-over-year, creating favorable conditions for owner-users seeking opportunities in a softening market.

Leasing activity also slowed, with volume dropping 21.5% quarter-over-quarter and closing the first half of 2025 at approximately 19.6 million square feet—down 4.0% year-to-date.

With rising vacancies, declining rents, and slowing demand, L.A. County’s industrial market appears poised for stabilization as landlords and developers adapt their strategies to navigate evolving economic conditions.