Commercial real estate deal volume drops for the first time in nearly two years

Core Insights - The recovery in commercial real estate (CRE) has been slow and uneven, closely tied to interest rate policies over recent years [2][3] - October 2025 marked the first month of negative year-over-year transaction volume growth since the recovery began in early 2024, with $24.4 billion in sales, approximately 70% of October 2019 sales [3][4] Market Trends - Deal volume growth had turned positive in early 2025, nearing pre-COVID levels by year-end, but has since slowed significantly due to high interest rates and economic uncertainty [4] - The industrial and multifamily sectors led the top 50 deals, while the hotel sector was the only one to see an increase in deal volume, with a 6% growth compared to last year [5]