After a slow start to 2025, commercial real estate activity is showing signs of recovery.
JLL’s global Bid Intensity Index improved in July, marking the first uptick since December. The index, which measures bidding activity to provide a real-time view of liquidity and competitiveness in private real estate capital markets, indicates a stabilisation of capital flows and bidder dynamics.
The index is composed of three sub-indices: bid-ask spread, bids per deal, and bid variability.
Narrowing bid-ask spreads and increasing numbers of bidders suggest growing market confidence, particularly in the “living” sector, which includes multifamily apartments, senior living, and student housing.
“With no shortage of liquidity, institutional investors are returning to the market with more capital sources and a renewed appetite for real estate,” Ben Breslau, chief research officer at JLL, told CNBC. “While further recovery is expected to be gradual after moderating earlier this year, borrowing costs and real estate values in most markets have stabilised, so we expect momentum to pick up through the second half of the year.”
Retail activity has improved from last year but remains under pressure from tariffs, while industrial activity lags due to supply chain and tariff concerns.
Office market bid dynamics are strengthening, supported by increased lending and a rise in return-to-office activity.
Breslau added: “The attractiveness of CRE investments as a long-term store of value remains intact. As more investors move to a ‘risk-on’ mode, coupled with the exceptionally strong debt markets, we expect this will lead to continued growth in capital flows.”
