Why Florida
Dynamic Trends Driving Growth
CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD FLORIDA Why DYNAMIC TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH Q1 2025
FLORIDA Why
AN INTERACTIVE LOOK AT DYNAMIC TRENDS DRIVING GROWTH
Its unique blend of a diverse economy, business-friendly policies, access to talent, and strategic location as a gateway to the Americas and Caribbean has proven Florida is a place where you can thrive both personally and professionally.
1 2 3 4 5 Florida currently ranks as the nation's 3rd most populated state growing 8.2% since 2020. Florida ranked number nine as overall best state in the nation and was the only state in the Southeast to crack the Top 10. Over the past ten years, Florida's population increased by nearly 3.6 million people, growing nearly 18.1% to over 23.4 million residents. In 2024, Florida was named the "most fun" state in the U.S. by WalletHub, which assessed various entertainment and recreational metrics.
The state's ports and strong ties to the Latin Americas and Caribbean have propelled Florida into a global player in the logistics and distribution, e-commerce and supply-chain industry segments.
Contents
OFFICE Q4 2024 BROWARD
MARKET FUNDAMENTALS
ECONOMY The unemployment rate in Broward County was 3.2%, up 10 basis points (bps) year-over-year (YOY). Despite the slight uptick, Broward County was 100 bps below the national rate and boasted the second lowest unemployment rate among major Florida markets. SUPPLY Broward County’s overall vacancy was 15.2% at the end of Q4, down 20 bps YOY to the lowest rate since Q2 2022. Class A vacancy rose 110 bps over the past 12 months, with large tenant vacancies in suburban markets, including Citrix’s Q3 102,000-square-foot (sf) move out, driving the spike. Class A vacancy in the Central Business District (CBD) decreased 60 bps while the suburban submarkets rose 200 bps from the close of 2023. Overall CBD vacancy decreased 80 bps YOY to its lowest point since Q2 2020. Phase I of the T3 FAT Village project remained the only project under construction in Broward County. The office portion of the mixed-use project in Downtown Fort Lauderdale is slated to bring nearly 175,000 sf of new high-end space with a projected 2025 delivery. DEMAND
15.2% Vacancy Rate 27,974 YTD Net Absorption, SF $41.16 Asking Rent, PSF (Overall, All Property Classes)
YOY Chg
Outlook
SELECT A TOPIC TO NAVIGATE SECTIONS
SPACE DEMAND / DELIVERIES
800
600
400
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
0 200
-200
Thousands
YOY Chg
-400
1 Related Insights Cushman & Wakefield Research reports analyze economic and commercial real estate activity including supply, demand and pricing trends at the statewide, market and submarket levels. $32 $34 $36 $38 $40 $42 2020 New leasing activity in Broward County totaled nearly 1.4 million square feet (msf) at year end, down 16.5% from one year ago. Despite the slight YOY decrease, new deals aligned with 2020 levels, continuing a two-year trend of market stabilization after the strong demand in 2021 and 2022. Although demand growth slowed, lease renewals in Broward County totaled 931,415 sf in 2024, up 33.4% YOY, marking the highest recorded total over the past five years. Overall absorption in the market was 69,614 sf in Q4, pushing the annual total positive to 27,974 sf and highlighting the market’s equilibrium over the past year. The largest tenant occupancies in Q4 included Seacor’s 31,216 sf at the DCOTA Office Center and Crystal Cruises taking its second full floor of 15,206 sf at The Onyx Tower in Hallandale Beach. PRICING The overall average asking rate in Broward County was $41.16 per square foot (psf), up 4.6% YOY. The Downtown Fort Lauderdale submarket averaged $53.50 psf, with top tier Class A space finishing the year at $55.14 psf, up 6.7%. Although Broward recorded a YOY increase, asking rental rates began leveling off in the second half of 2024. Despite the increase in operating and build-out costs, the decrease in deal activity and lack of new trophy product in the market points to continued rent stabilization heading into 2025. Outlook 932K Broward County Employment 3.2% Broward County Unemployment Rate 4.2% U.S. Unemployment Rate Source:BLS
-600
2020
2021
Net Absorption, SF Construction Completions, SF
2022
2023
2024
OVERALL VACANCY & ASKING RENT
17%
15%
CLICKING THE HOME ICON WILL TAKE YOU BACK TO THE TABLE OF CONTENTS
13%
11%
2021
9%
2022
Asking Rent, $ PSF
7%
2023
2024
5%
Vacancy Rate
© 2025 Cushman & Wakefield © 2025 Cushman & Wakefield
Florida Snapshot
About Florida
Capital Tallahassee
JACKSONVILLE
OUTER JACKSONVILLE
Nickname Sunshine State
OCALA
GDP: $1.7T
ORLANDO
State Tree Sabal Palm
SPACE COAST
TAMPA
State Flower Orange Blossom
#1 Best Economy IN 2024 BY GDP GROWTH #2 Largest Foreign Tradezone Network IN THE UNITED STATES #3 Largest Workforce IN THE UNITED STATES #9 Overall Job Growth IN THE UNITED STATES
SARASOTA
67 Counties
PALM BEACH BOCA RATON FT LAUDERDALE
FORT MYERS
NAPLES
27 th State ADMITTED MARCH 3, 1845
MIAMI
State Bird Mockingbird
EMERGING MARKETS MAJOR MARKETS
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Florida Migration
Historic Population
Net Migration PER THOUSAND
Projected Growth
24M
500
26M
23.4M
25.4M
467
23M
400
25M
22M
300
24M
21M
264
23.4M
20.1M
200
23M
20M
100
19M
22M
18M
0
2024
2025
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
636.4K
Texas
TOP STATES BY POPULATION GROWTH 2023 — 2024
466.1 K
Florida
213.2K
North Carolina
156.6K
Georgia
142.2K
Arizona
132.0K
New york
125.3K
New Jersey
122.1K 116.3K 110.0K
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Virginia
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
0K
100K
200K
300K
400K
500K
600K
Education
OF THE 25+ YEAR OLD POPULATION
Florida Education Attainment Breakdown
Largest Four Year Colleges in Florida by Student Enrollment
91 % Have a High School Diploma or Higher
36%
69,233
36
U.S. Census Bureau
% Have a Bachelor's Degree or Higher
54,814
28%
53,953
U.S. Census Bureau
27%
48,572
ACADEMIC YEAR 2023 – 2024
43,234
184 Four Year Colleges
86 Community Colleges
135 Trade/Vocational Schools
9%
University of Central Florida
University of South Florida
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School or GED
University of Florida
Univstats.com
Florida State University
Some College or Associate
Less Than High School
Florida International University
# 1
In Higher Education
FLORIDA
1.0M Total Students
RANKS
Univstats.com
Univstats.com
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Competitive Advantage
Cost of Living Comparison
Labor Pool & Talent
FLORIDA RANKED THIRD-LARGEST IN WORKFORCE
Sum of Cost Index
188.4 HIGHEST COST OF LIVING
BY YEAR END 2022, FLORIDA SURPASSED NEW YORK IN TOTAL EMPLOYMENT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, A LEAD IT MAINTAINED IN 2024
100.3
FLORIDA
84.9 LOWEST COST OF LIVING
Business Environment
#4 BEST BUSINESS TAX CLIMATE
#5 BEST STATE BUSINESS CLIMATE #1 BEST STATE TO START A BUSINESS IN THE U.S.
Total Employment 2023 – 2024 Total Employment 2023-2024
PRO-BUSINESS LOCAL & STATE GOVERNMENT
20
18
16
14
Work/Life Balance
12
10
81° AVG HIGH 60° AVG LOW
NO STATE OR LOCAL PERSONAL INCOME TAX LOW PROPERTY TAXES COMPARED TO NORTH
8
Millions
6
4
2
0
IL
IA
IN
ID
HI
RI
MI
FL
WI
NJ
AL
LA
AZ
VT
TX
TN
CT
UT
VA
KY
KS
AK
PA
SC
NV
AR
NE
DE
SD
CA
NY
MT
GA
NC
OK
NH
ND
OH
MA
CO
OR
MS
ME
MD
MN
NM
WA
MO
WV
WY
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Leisure & Hospitality
IN 2024, FLORIDA RECEIVED 142.9M Visitors 1.6% INCREASE FROM RECORD-BREAKING 2023
825 Miles BEACHES STATEWIDE
Tourism's Impact on Florida's Economy
$ 131 B
$ 140 B
$ 120 B
$ 85.9 B
IN 2024, FLORIDA TOURISM GENERATED $131B in Visitor Spending
8 MAJOR THEME PARKS
12 MAJOR LEAGUE SPORTS
$ 100 B
$ 80 B
$ 60 B
$ 40 B
2024 VISITATION
$ 20 B
$ 0 B
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
HOME TO THE WORLD'S Top 3 Cruise Ports PORT OF MIAMI PORT CANAVERAL PORT EVERGLADES 20.9M PASSENGERS IN 2024
12.2M INTERNATIONAL
130.7M DOMESTIC
2.1M Jobs SUPPORTED BY VISITOR SPENDING
AVERAGE DAILY ROOM RATE $200.47 0.5% INCREASE FROM 2023
69.8% STATEWIDE AVG HOTEL/MOTEL OCCUPANCY RATE IN 2024 – STR
0.4% DECREASE FROM 2023
494,122 HOTEL/MOTEL ROOMS
4,659 PROPERTIES
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Industry Diversity
1.1M Total Businesses
62.6% White Collar
19.2% Blue Collar
18.2% Services
EMERGING INDUSTRIES Tech/FinTech • Manufacturing in North Florida • Aerospace in Space Coast
Business Summary by NAICS (%)
Labor Force by Occupation (%)
0.0 %
2.0 %
4.0 %
6.0 %
8.0 %
10.0 %
12.0 %
0.0 %
5.0 %
10.0 %
15.0 %
20.0 %
25.0 %
Trade Transportation & Utilities
Management O ce/Admin Sales Transportation/Moving Health Practices Food Preparation Business/Financial Construction/Extraction Education/Library Building Maintenance Production Computer/Mathematical Maintenance/Repair
Professional & Business Services Educational & Health Services
Top Five 20.2% 1 15.3% 3 13.4% 4 11.6% 5 16.2% 2
Top Five 12.5% 1 SALES 10.4% 3 10.9% 2
TRADE, TRANS & UTILITIES
MANAGEMENT
Leisure & Hospitality
Government
PRO & BUSINESS SVCS
OFFICE/ADMIN
Financial Activities
Construction
EDUCATION & HEALTH SVCS
Health Support Personal Care Protective Service
Manufacturing
Arts/Entertainment/Rec Architecture/Engineer Social Service Legal
Other Services
LEISURE & HOSPITALITY
TRANS/MOVING
7.3% 4 6.7% 5
Information
Life/Social Sciences Farm/Fish/Forestry
GOVERNMENT
HEALTH PRACTICES
Mining & Logging
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Logistics & Transportation
Map Layer Options
Toggle to Enable Views
Rail & Intermodal
Ports
Highways
Metropolitan Areas
Major Airports
Map Legend
SEA
RAIL
SKY
LAND
15 seaports generate ~900k jobs and $117.6B in economic value. Nation's most container ports & supply chain options for retailers, manufacturers, third-party logistics and ocean carriers.
+3.8k miles of railroad, including 2.7k mainline miles.
19 passenger service airports, including 16 international airports. 10.6% of the total U.S. air traffic comes from Florida airports.
+217B miles traveled on public roads per year.
Most fuel efficient way to move freight over land.
408 bridges and +3.6k miles of highway.
Brightline passenger rail operates intercity service.
#14 in Infrastructure
Closest U.S. seaports to the
Downtown Miami West Palm Beach Orlando MCO Tampa Bay Future Expansion
Panama Canal and at the crossroads of East-West & North South trade lanes.
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Skilled & Growing Workforce
#1 IN NET MIGRATION IN THE UNITED STATES - 2024
Labor Force
Unemployment Rate
11.0M
11M
8.0 %
'24 Stat�
Ranking� Education #1
10.5M
6.0 %
5.2 %
Graduation Rate #5
10M
3.4 %
4.0 %
9.7M
9.5M
2.0 %
Employment Growth +0.3%
Job Added #9
0.0 %
9M
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Over 37% of the total population is 25–54 year olds. ESRI
#1 FOR ATTRACTING & DEVELOPING SKILLED WORKFORCE IN THE UNITED STATES - 2024
4.1% U.S. Unemployment Rate
ESRI
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
New-to-Market Tenant Demand
FT LAUDERDALE/ PALM BEACH West Marine Innovation Health Orbis Goldman Sachs JACKSONVILLE Consentino Group Dunn & Bradstreet IKO Industries NYMBUS Olympus Insurance Paysafe
Redmond
NewDay USA Millennium Management
Camas
Massachussets
New York Connecticut
London
Chicago
New Jersey
Maryland
San Francisco
Colorado
Virginia
MIAMI Blackstone
Microsoft Millennium Management Subway
Citadel Kaseya Kirkland & Ellis
Glendale Irvine
ORLANDO Astronics Test Systems Checkr Dnata
Optivor Technologies Spartan Race Inc.
Dubai
Florida Continues to Draw a Wide Array of New-To-Market Companies Including: FINANCIAL SERVICES | TECH | HEALTHCARE | LAW
TAMPA DoubleLine Capital Fisher Investments Foot Locker
ID.me OPSWAT Pfizer Rapid7
Colombia
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Office Market Snapshot Q1 2025
188.3 MSF Statewide Inventory
Miami/Dade
Broward
Palm Beach County
Tampa/Hillsborough
Pinellas County
Orlando
Jacksonville
DIRECT VACANCY RATE
YTD OVERALL NET ABSORPTION SF
200k
20.1 %
INVENTORY
RENTAL RATE
20.0 % 20.0%
143.2k
17.7 %
150k
16.7 %
15.2 %
14.6 %
14.5 %
100k
15.0 %
188.3 MSF TOTAL
$39.28 DIRECT WTD AVG PSF
12.7 %
36.6k
50k
10.0 %
1.6k
0k
−5.8k
5.0 %
−50k
39.5M Miami/Dade 26.4M Broward
$63.06 Miami/Dade $42.19 Broward
−62.1k
−100k
0.0 %
−103.2k
−105.8k
23.7M Palm Beach County 31.0M Tampa/Hillsborough 9.5M Pinellas County 36.7M Orlando 21.5M Jacksonville
$50.98 Palm Beach County $33.07 Tampa/Hillsborough $27.11 Pinellas County $27.11 Orlando $22.94 Jacksonville
OVERALL VACANCY RATE
YTD LEASING ACTIVITY SF
1.0M
25.0%
22.0 %
1.0M
21.0 %
18.5 %
20.0 % 20.0%
0.8M
17.0 %
16.1 %
0.6M
VACANT SPACE
15.4 %
0.6M
13.6 %
15.0 %
0.6M
0.5M
6.0M Miami/Dade 3.8M Broward 3.0M Palm Beach County 5.5M Tampa/Hillsborough 1.6M Pinellas County 5.4M Orlando 4.3M Jacksonville 29.6 MSF DIRECT
3.2 MSF SUBLEASE
10.0 %
0.4M
0.3M
250.0k 0.3M
0.2M
0.2M
5.0 %
0.0M
0.0 %
Miami/Dade
71.4k
404.9k Broward 222.8k Palm Beach County 1.0M Tampa/Hillsborough 167.3k Pinellas County 870.5k Orlando 414.0k Jacksonville
265.8 KSF Construction Completions
1.3 MSF Under Construction
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Industrial Market Snapshot Q1 2025 754.7 MSF Statewide Inventory DIRECT VACANCY RATE Miami/Dade Broward Palm Beach County
Lakeland
Tampa/Hillsborough
Pinellas County
Orlando
Jacksonville
YTD OVERALL NET ABSORPTION SF
VACANT SPACE
9.5 %
10.0%
958.7k
1.0M
8.1 %
48.3 MSF DIRECT
2.6 MSF SUBLEASE
8.0 %
800k
6.7 %
6.5 %
587.3k
5.9 %
5.7 %
600k
6.0 %
5.0 %
400k
3.5 %
4.0 %
200k
75.3k 15.3k
64.6k
10.3M Miami/Dade 3.2M Broward 2.8M
635.5k Miami/Dade 442.0k Broward
0
2.0 %
−8.0k
−15.0k
−200k
60.0k Palm Beach County 585.9k Tampa/Hillsborough 33.9k Pinellas County 0.0k Lakeland/Polk 497.8k Orlando 359.5k Jacksonville
Palm Beach County Tampa/Hillsborough
−0.2M -206.3k
0.0 %
5.1M 1.8M 7.0M
Pinellas County Lakeland/Polk
OVERALL VACANCY RATE
YTD LEASING ACTIVITY SF
10.2M Orlando 7.9M
Jacksonville
2.5M
9.5 %
2.1M
10.0%
8.5 %
1.9M
2.0M
8.0 %
7.0 %
6.6 %
6.6 %
RENTAL RATE
6.1 %
1.5M
6.0 %
5.1 %
3.9 %
0.9M
$11.29 DIRECT WTD AVG PSF
$11.32 OVERALL WTD AVG PSF
1.0M
0.7M
4.0 %
0.6M
0.5M
0.5M
2.0 %
0.2M
0.2M
0.0 %
0.0M
$16.94 Miami/Dade $16.66 Broward
$16.91 Miami/Dade $16.63 Broward
$13.33 Palm Beach County $10.23 Tampa/Hillsborough $11.06 Pinellas County $7.63 Lakeland/Polk $9.09 Orlando $7.80 Jacksonville
$13.30 Palm Beach County $10.01 Tampa/Hillsborough $11.06 Pinellas County $7.63 Lakeland/Polk $9.08 Orlando $7.85 Jacksonville
3.8 MSF Construction Completions
16.1 MSF Under Construction
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Multifamily Market Snapshot Q1 2025
STABILIZED OCCUPANCY RATE Excludes Properties Still In Their Initial Lease-Up Period 93.0% 1,094,704 UNITS Across 4,004 Properties
EFFECTIVE RENT VS STABILIZED OCCUPANCY RATE
ABSORPTION VS COMPLETIONS
100k
$ 2.5k
97 %
80k
96 %
$ 2.0k
95 %
60k
$ 1.5k
94 %
OVER $86.5 BILLION IN SALES OVER THE PAST 5 YEARS
40k
$ 1.0k
93 %
20k
$ 0.5k
92 %
Market Asking Rent Per Unit by Bedroom 5-Year Increase Comparison: Studio 23.8% $1,665 1 Bedroom 26.8% $1,758 2 Bedroom 27.0% $2,093 3 Bedroom 25.9% $2,506
0k
$ 0.0k
91 %
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025 YTD
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025 YTD
Effective Rent Per Unit
Stabilized Occupancy Rate
Construction Completions
Overall Net Absorption
Nearly 90,723 Units Under Construction
Sources: CoStar, Cushman & Wakefield Research
Cushman & Wakefield | Why Florida
Market Leads
Authors
SOURCES
The Capitolist TownCharts univstats.com U.S. Census Bureau U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Visit Florida
Lightcast.io Moody's Analytics National Association of Realtors Niche 2020 STR Tampa Bay EDC Tax Foundation, 2021
aaroads.com Chief Executive Magazine, 2022 Biz2Credit CoStar Enterprise Florida ESRI flgov.com
Contributors
Josh Faircloth Research Manager | Tampa +1 813 424 3220 joshua.faircloth@cushwake.com
Connor Salzman Senior Research Analyst | Ft. Lauderdale +1 954 377 0493 connor.salzman@cushwake.com
Easton Ricks Research Analyst | Orlando & Jacksonville +1 407 949 0803 easton.ricks@cushwake.com
©2025 Cushman & Wakefield. All rights reserved. The information contained within this report is gathered from multiple sources believed to be reliable. The information may contain errors or omissions and is presented without any warranty or representation as to its accuracy. Cushman & Wakefield does not claim any ownership rights to the corporate logos featured in Why Florida and their usage in this research report is strictly for illustrative and informative purposes. Why Florida is intended for limited distribution.
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