As the COVID-19 pandemic raged in 2020, the global volume of commercial real estate sales transactions of at least $2.5 million fell by 20%. However, while commercial real estate deals declined globally, the United States remains the top commercial estate market globally, with 16 U.S. metros in the top 30 largest commercial real estate markets on a global scale, according to NAR’s 2021 Commercial International Real Estate Business Trends Report.
Many global cities suffered more than 20% declines in commercial real estate transactions, including the New York City metro (-41.3%), but the NYC metro area retained its #1 position as the largest commercial real estate market in the world ($28.5 B). Sixteen U.S. cities made it to the top 30 largest commercial real estate markets in the world based on the level of acquisitions of domestic, continental, and global (non-continental, non-domestic) acquisitions in those markets: NYC Metro, LA Metro, SF Metro, Dallas, DC Metro, Boston Metro, Atlanta Metro, Phoenix, Seattle, Chicago, Denver, Miami, Houston, Charlotte, Raleigh/Durham, and Philadelphia.
