Markets / North Suburbs
The North Suburbs are a split market for office tenants. In Q3 2026, about 16% of office space from Evanston north to Lake Forest sat vacant, but about 30% of Class A space along the Edens and Lake Cook Road corridor was empty, and that corridor gave back about 610,000 SF of occupied space over the past year. No new office construction is underway. In the transactions we track and negotiate, Class A space leases for about $36 to $44 per SF gross and Class B for $24 to $32, with 1 to 2 months of free rent per year of term and improvement allowances of $5 to $8 per SF per lease year. Tenant Advisors represents only tenants.
Class A along the Edens corridor is still about 30% empty, while Evanston and Skokie have recovered. Where you look decides how much leverage you have.
| Q3 2026 | Edens / Lake Cook corridor | Evanston and Skokie |
|---|---|---|
| Overall vacancy | About 17%, up about 1 point in a year | About 13%, flat over the year |
| Class A vacancy | About 30% | About 25% |
| Class B vacancy | About 16% | About 12% |
| Net absorption, last 12 months | About −610,000 SF | About −17,000 SF |
| New construction underway | None | None |
| Sublease space available | About 750,000 SF | — |
| Lease terms we are negotiating | Class A | Class B |
|---|---|---|
| Rent, gross per SF | About $36 to $44 | About $24 to $32 |
| Free rent | 1 to 2 months per year of term | 1 to 2 months per year of term |
| Improvement allowance | $5 to $8 per SF per lease year ($25 to $40 on a 5-year lease) | $3 to $6 per SF per lease year ($15 to $30 on a 5-year lease) |
| Free rent on a 5-year lease | Typically 5 to 10 months | Typically 5 to 10 months |
Rents and concessions reflect the North Suburbs transactions Tenant Advisors tracks and negotiates as of October 2026. Results vary by building, size, term, and credit. The Edens / Lake Cook corridor runs from Glenview and Northbrook through Deerfield, Bannockburn, and Lake Forest.
The vacancy is concentrated in one place: Class A along the Edens and Lake Cook Road corridor.
Class A vacancy in the corridor jumped from about 17% in 2023 to about 31% in 2024 as several large blocks were vacated in Deerfield, Northbrook, and the Lake Cook Road parks. It has stayed near 30% since, and the corridor lost about 610,000 SF of occupied space over the past 12 months.
No new office buildings are under construction. The empty space sits in existing campuses, many of them built in the 1980s and 1990s, which is why those landlords compete hardest on free rent and improvement dollars.
Corridor vacancy rose from about 14% in 2023 to a peak near 18% at the end of 2025 and has eased to about 17%. Class B is about 16% vacant, so the pressure is mainly at the top of the market.
Vacancy there peaked near 18% in early 2024 and is back to about 13%, still a little above its 10-year average of about 11%. Class A there is about 25% vacant; Class B is about 12%.
With about 30% of Class A space empty and about 610,000 SF of occupancy lost in a year, landlords in Northbrook, Deerfield, and the Lake Cook Road parks are competing hardest. Tenants who run a real process can trade up to Class A at rates close to what they pay in Class B today.
Vacancy there has held near 13% for a year, and Class B is about 88% occupied. If you need to be in downtown Evanston or near the Purple Line, start early and expect less room on rate than along the Edens.
Contiguous space of 20,000 to 37,000 SF is open in buildings such as 1650 Lake Cook Road and Orrington Plaza, and about 750,000 SF of sublease space is on the market along the Edens corridor, much of it built out. Growing companies can expand quickly, and short-term needs can be met for less.
Your landlord knows what empty floors cost. A North Shore renewal in this market should include free rent and an improvement allowance, not just a rate increase.
The tenants most active in the North Suburbs right now are:
Three buildings that show where North Shore landlords are flexible right now. Figures are Q3 2026 and rounded.
A five-story, Energy Star building of about 129,000 SF on a seven-acre campus, built in 1995. About 63% leased, with two vacant upper floors that combine into about 36,800 SF of contiguous space. Day care, fitness, and conferencing on site, four minutes from the Lake-Cook and Deerfield Metra stations and about 21 minutes from O’Hare.
Downtown Evanston’s 20-story tower, about 308,000 SF, renovated in 1999. About 68% leased, with about 112,600 SF available across 27 spaces, from on-site coworking suites up to about 20,000 SF. A four-minute walk to the CTA Purple Line at Davis and five minutes to Metra, with banking, a restaurant, day care, and 24-hour access.
A six-story, Energy Star building of about 129,000 SF at Dundee Road and the Edens, built in 2001. About 91% leased, with suites from about 2,400 SF up to an 8,900 SF block. Banking, fitness, food service, conferencing, and EV charging on site, free parking, and about 27 minutes to O’Hare.
We don’t represent any of these landlords. Ask us which buildings fit your size, budget, and term, and what they are actually conceding.
A late-2025 lease in a Class A Northbrook building. This is a market comparable we track, not a Tenant Advisors client; the tenant’s name is withheld.
of free rent, about 1 month per year of term, plus $75 per SF toward the buildout.
Many of the brokers working the North Shore also lease buildings for landlords here. Tenant Advisors has represented only tenants since 2004 and doesn’t own or manage office buildings, so every building in the North Suburbs is on the table and every landlord is someone we negotiate against.
In Q3 2026, about 16% of office space in the North Suburbs, from Evanston to Lake Forest, was vacant. Vacancy runs highest in the Edens and Lake Cook Road corridor at about 17%, including about 30% of Class A space, after Class A vacancy there nearly doubled in 2024. Evanston and Skokie are at about 13%. Figures are rounded Tenant Advisors Market Data.
In the transactions we track and negotiate as of October 2026, Class A office space in the North Suburbs leases for about $36 to $44 per SF gross and Class B for about $24 to $32 per SF gross. Building quality, location, size, term, and credit move the final number.
Typically 1 to 2 months of free rent per year of lease term, or about 5 to 10 months on a 5-year lease, plus improvement allowances of $5 to $8 per SF per lease year in Class A and $3 to $6 in Class B. Tenants who create real competition between buildings get the upper end, especially in Class A along the Edens corridor.
For Class A space along the Edens and Lake Cook Road corridor, yes. About 30% of it is vacant and the corridor lost about 610,000 SF of occupied space over the past year, so landlords are competing for tenants. Evanston and Skokie are steadier, so tenants there should start 12 to 18 months before their lease expires, whether they plan to renew or relocate.
Evanston, Skokie, Glenview, Northbrook, Northfield, Deerfield, Bannockburn, Riverwoods, Lincolnshire, Buffalo Grove, Highland Park, Lake Forest, and Vernon Hills.
Updated October 6, 2026, with Q3 2026 Tenant Advisors Market Data. Written by Tom Koelzer and Dave Ven Horst, co-founders of Tenant Advisors, Inc., in Chicago office leasing since 1986 and 1985 and tenant-only since 2004. Our office: 1515 E. Woodfield Road, Suite 116, Schaumburg, IL 60173.
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