Tight NH Office Market Lifts Asking Rents

Businesses leasing office space in New Hampshire will find less room to negotiate as vacancy falls and asking rents rise.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Remote Work

Tight NH Office Market Lifts Asking Rents

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New Hampshire's statewide office vacancy rate fell to 10.3% in the third quarter, down 3.1% from a year ago, while average asking office rent rose to $22.28, up 1.7% from a year ago. For operators with office leases or hiring plans in the state, the tighter market means less negotiating room on space that is harder to find.

Why it matters

The vacancy decline is being driven by shrinking office footprints as companies adopt hybrid schedules, combined with little new construction, so available space is scarce while demand holds up. Owners of office space are pausing conversions and repurposing buildings as leases expire, which leaves fewer options for tenants.

Office vacancy fell to 10.3%, down 3.1% from a year ago, and asking rent reached $22.28, up 1.7% year over year. Industrial vacancy held flat at 5.8% while industrial asking rent rose 4.4% to $11.79 NNN, and the $47.5 million sale of the former Anheuser-Busch plant in Merrimack is the largest deal cited in the report.

The players

Colliers

Global commercial real estate services firm that publishes market reports on office and industrial vacancy and rent trends.

Brady Sullivan Properties

New Hampshire real estate developer that is converting the former Liberty Mutual campus in Dover into a mixed-use lifestyle village.

Fidelity

Large financial services company that moved most of its New Hampshire employees to full-time on-site work in September.

Robert Half

Staffing and consulting firm whose job posting data tracked the share of hybrid roles in New Hampshire.

The details

Many companies have moved from fully remote work to a hybrid model, with employees working from home three days a week and in the office two. Fidelity, for example, moved most of its New Hampshire employees to full-time on-site work in September. Because the office footprint is shrinking while little new office space is being built, the remaining space is tighter and more expensive. Some owners are converting office space to other uses as leases expire, and Brady Sullivan Properties is turning the 585,000-square-foot former Liberty Mutual campus in Dover into a mixed-use lifestyle village.

First quarter of 2026: Robert Half data showed the share of New Hampshire hybrid job postings at 19%, fourth among the top five states.
September 2026: Fidelity moved most of its New Hampshire employees to full-time on-site work.
Third quarter 2026: Colliers reported that office vacancy fell to 10.3%.

Market Landscape

New Hampshire's hybrid job posting share of 19% in early 2026 placed it fourth among the top five states, showing that the hybrid model is now embedded in local hiring. That pattern is reflected in the office market, where tenants are leasing less space and owners are shifting buildings to other uses rather than building new ones.

Operators leasing office space in New Hampshire should expect limited availability and rising asking rents, so renewal and expansion decisions should be made earlier in the lease cycle. Companies building hybrid policies should account for the fact that the space they need may cost more and be harder to secure than it was a year ago.

The takeaway

Hybrid work is shrinking the office footprint and tightening the market, so businesses planning space should track quarterly vacancy and asking rent data from commercial brokers. Operators weighing a lease should consult a commercial real estate broker or attorney before signing, since terms on tighter markets can vary considerably.