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CRE Brokerages Ride Deal Surge to Record Start in 2026

CRE Brokerages Ride Deal Surge to Record Start in 2026

Record revenues, surging deal volume, and AI-fueled leasing demand signal a breakout year for CRE.

Nina Dale
May 04, 2026

In partnership with

Good morning. Three of the world's biggest brokerages just had their best quarter in years. Transaction volume is climbing, and 2026 is shaping up to be a banner year.

🎙️This Week on No Cap: Harbor Group International’s Richard Litton breaks down scaling to $21B, the shift from office to credit, and where he’s finding opportunity in a reset CRE market.

CRE Trivia 🧠

What was the first U.S. REIT ever created?

(Answer at the bottom of the newsletter)

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Market Snapshot

S&P 500

GSPC

7,230.12

Pct Chg:
+0.29%

FTSE NAREIT

FNER

840.42

Pct Chg:
-0.21%

10Y Treasury

TNX

4.38%

Pct Chg:
-0.01

SOFR

30-DAY AVERAGE

3.65%

Pct Chg:
-0.00

*Data as of 5/01/2026 market close.

Brokerage Boom

CRE Brokerages Ride Deal Surge to Record Start in 2026

A surge in leasing and capital markets activity is pushing top brokerages toward their strongest year since the pandemic.

The deals are back: JLL posted $6.4B in Q1 revenue (up 11% YoY) and a 188% profit jump, while Newmark brought in $846.5M (up 27%) with profits rising nearly 60%. Both firms are riding a wave of deal activity that now matches—or exceeds—pre-pandemic 2019 levels.

Leasing demand rebounds: Strength in office and industrial leasing helped fuel growth, with JLL reporting a 16% increase in leasing revenue. Notably, demand tied to AI firms and data centers is accelerating activity, particularly in coastal markets like New York and San Francisco.

Capital markets roar back: Investment sales and financing are surging. Newmark’s capital markets revenue jumped 46%, while JLL saw a 21% increase. Globally, property sales climbed 27% in Q1, with projections pointing to a roughly $600B market in 2026.

Deal momentum builds: Executives across JLL, Newmark, and CBRE report strong pipelines and continued transaction flow, with minimal fallout from macro uncertainty. Deals may take slightly longer to close, but they’re still getting done.

Geopolitics in the background: Despite global tensions, including the Iran conflict, U.S. real estate activity remains largely unaffected so far. European markets are seeing some disruption tied to rising energy costs, but the broader outlook remains intact.

➥ THE TAKEAWAY

Comeback mode: CRE brokerage is firmly back in growth mode, with AI-driven demand and a capital markets recovery doing the heavy lifting. If momentum holds, 2026 could mark a full-cycle comeback for dealmaking.

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✍️ Editor’s Picks

Policy pivot: With bipartisan scrutiny on single-family rentals, multifamily investments emerge as a resilient alternative. Learn how to position your capital wisely. (sponsored)
Code rollback: HUD and USDA aim to eliminate Biden-era energy-efficiency rules, saying they added up to $31K per home, as part of a broader effort to lower costs and accelerate housing development.
Recession window: El-Erian says the economy has 4–8 weeks to avoid a downturn as oil supply disruptions push prices higher and threaten growth, jobs, and market stability.
Upward shift: More Americans are moving into higher income tiers, expanding the upper-middle class even as income gaps widen.
Leadership change: Oxford Properties appointed a 30-year industry veteran to lead its U.S. business, its largest market representing about 40% of its global portfolio.

🏘️ MULTIFAMILY

Demand slowdown: Orange County multifamily investment volume fell by half to $198M in Q1 as absorption, occupancy, and rent growth softened despite limited new supply.
Land giveaways: South Florida cities are giving away public land to developers to spur affordable housing, trading cost savings for controversy over transparency and oversight.
Charlotte bet: RXR and the North Carolina Investment Authority closed a $33M structured equity investment in a 329-unit Charlotte multifamily project, advancing a larger mixed-use development.
Guarantee fallout: Starwood won a court victory against GVA’s Alan Stalcup over personal loan guarantees tied to multifamily properties, with potential liability reaching up to $110M.

🏭 Industrial

Supply reset: North America’s big-box industrial market is rebounding as strong demand and reduced construction bring vacancy down and restore supply-demand balance.
AI surge: Equinix posted record Q1 bookings and raised its outlook as booming demand for AI and cloud infrastructure drives strong data center growth.
Industrial buy: Bain Capital paid $52M for a 380K SF industrial campus in Pompano Beach, underscoring strong investor demand for well-located South Florida logistics assets.
Data center: Blue Owl’s Beale Infrastructure is launching a $3B hyperscale data center campus in Kansas, signaling growing demand and expansion in emerging digital infrastructure markets.
Windy city resilience: Chicago’s industrial market remains stable with low vacancy, steady leasing, and more balanced construction, defying post-pandemic volatility seen in other sectors.

🏬 RETAIL

Leasing surge: Kimco posted record Q1 leasing activity with 576 deals and strong rent growth, signaling continued demand for grocery-anchored retail centers.
Mall makeover: URW has begun a long-delayed redevelopment of its New Jersey flagship mall into a mixed-use “town center” with housing, retail, and public space.
Retail resilience: Consumer spending and retail fundamentals remain strong despite inflation, with low vacancy, rising deal activity, and steady demand supporting the sector.

🏢 OFFICE

Office pullback: Google is expected to reduce its D.C. office footprint as it shifts spending toward AI and data center investments.
Office distress: A vacant 442K SF Houston office tower is headed for foreclosure after losing its sole tenant and failing to find viable reuse or refinancing options.
Leasing boost: Newmark reported 27% revenue growth in Q1, driven by a surge in office leasing activity and rising demand from AI and tech tenants.
Loan pressure: Atlanta’s 191 Peachtree Tower faces refinancing risk as occupancy drops to 58% and cash flow declines, putting its $80M loan on a watchlist.

🏨 HOSPITALITY

Vegas drag: MGM Resorts posted slight Las Vegas revenue growth but weaker profits and occupancy, offset by stronger China results and new all-inclusive offerings.
Condo crutch: Luxury hotel development is increasingly dependent on branded residential components, as condo presales help offset rising costs and secure financing in a tough lending environment.
Retail access: Scholar Hotels is launching a $5,000-entry platform to open college-town hotel investing to a broader pool of non-accredited investors.

📈 CHART OF THE DAY

Source: Ares

Retail is outperforming other CRE sectors with record occupancy, but new development is falling as construction costs have outpaced rent growth by roughly 30%, making projects hard to justify.

CRE Trivia (Answer)🧠

American Realty Trust, founded by Thomas J. Broyhill in 1961, the same year President Eisenhower signed the REIT Act into law.

CRE Brokerages Ride Deal Surge to Record Start in 2026

Record revenues, surging deal volume, and AI-fueled leasing demand signal a breakout year for CRE.

CRE Trivia 🧠