Louisville office gets talked about like one market with one vacancy rate. It's really two: a downtown in the middle of a conversion wave, and a set of suburban corridors that are tighter, pricier, and in some cases nearly full. If you're leasing, buying, or selling office space, which corridor you're in changes the whole conversation.
Here's how each submarket stacks up, using Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Kentucky's Q2 2026 Louisville Office MarketBeat, published July 2026. Rents are asking rents per square foot per year, full service, meaning the landlord's operating costs are built into the rent.
The submarkets at a glance (Q2 2026)
- Hurstbourne / Eastpoint: 4.88 million square feet, 19.7% vacant, $21.56 asking ($21.93 Class A)
- St. Matthews: 1.30 million square feet, 5.6% vacant, $17.73 asking ($23.50 Class A)
- Northeast (Brownsboro Road and beyond): 940,000 square feet, 4.9% vacant, $22.15 asking
- Plainview / Middletown: 1.35 million square feet, 17.8% vacant, $17.81 asking
- Southeast: 1.24 million square feet, 12.1% vacant, $19.99 asking ($19.50 Class A)
- All suburban: 11.6 million square feet, 16.0% vacant, $19.95 asking ($21.06 Class A)
- Downtown (CBD, the Central Business District): 8.2 million square feet, 20.8% vacant, $17.79 asking ($20.30 Class A)
Metro-wide, Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Kentucky counts 19.8 million square feet at 17.9% vacancy and $19.03 asking rent, with 137,254 square feet of positive net absorption in Q2 (net absorption is space tenants moved into minus space they left). CBRE measures a different set of buildings and reports 22.1% overall vacancy, which is why you'll see different numbers from different firms. We always name the source. See our Q3 2026 market report for CBRE's view.
Hurstbourne and Eastpoint: the biggest suburban corridor
At nearly 4.9 million square feet, Hurstbourne/Eastpoint is the largest office submarket outside downtown, running along Hurstbourne Parkway and out I-64 to Eastpoint Business Park and Blankenbaker. It led every Louisville submarket in leasing through the first half of 2026 at 65,547 square feet, including LikeMarq's 10,218-square-foot lease at 500 N. Hurstbourne Parkway. At 19.7% vacant, tenants have real choices here, and Class A rents still top $21.
What that means for you: if you're a tenant, this is where you can shop and negotiate. If you're an owner, Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Kentucky notes that several large suburban office buildings have recently sold, with more coming to market, so pricing and positioning matter.
St. Matthews and the Northeast: almost full
St. Matthews (5.6% vacant) and the Northeast submarket along Brownsboro Road (4.9% vacant) are the tightest office markets in the city. Class A space in St. Matthews asks $23.50, the highest of any submarket. Small professional users like medical, legal, financial, and insurance offices compete for very little space here.
What that means for you: owners in these corridors have pricing power, and tenants should start looking 12 to 18 months before their lease ends. Smaller office condos and owner-user buildings here rarely sit long.
Plainview, Middletown, and the Southeast
Plainview/Middletown (17.8% vacant, $17.81) and the Southeast (12.1% vacant, $19.99) are value corridors: older inventory, more flexibility, and lower rents than Hurstbourne or St. Matthews. The I-64 / Blankenbaker side of the East End is also getting a major healthcare anchor. Norton Children's is planning a pediatric campus on 150 acres in Jeffersontown near I-64, and Norton Healthcare opened a 41,000-square-foot automated pharmacy at 2701 Chestnut Station Court in Jeffersontown in July 2026.
What that means for you: healthcare growth tends to pull medical office demand along with it. See our healthcare and medical office page.
Downtown: shrinking on purpose
Downtown's office inventory fell from about 9.0 million to 8.2 million square feet in Q2 2026 as the Humana Tower, the Brown & Williamson Tower, the Grammercy Building, and the Fireside Building came out of the office count for conversion to other uses. Downtown Class A vacancy improved from 27.1% to 25.9%, and Yum! Brands took 74,667 square feet. Read the full story in our downtown Louisville commercial real estate guide.
Which corridor fits you
- Want the most choice and room to negotiate? Hurstbourne / Eastpoint.
- Want a prestige address close to East End neighborhoods? St. Matthews or the Northeast, if you can find the space.
- Want lower rent and flexibility? Plainview / Middletown or the Southeast.
- Want a downtown address at a discount, or a conversion play? The CBD.
Frequently asked questions
What is the office vacancy rate in Louisville?
Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Kentucky reported 17.9% metro-wide in Q2 2026, with suburban office at 16.0% and downtown at 20.8%. CBRE, which tracks a different building set, reported 22.1%.
Which Louisville office submarket has the lowest vacancy?
The Northeast submarket (4.9%) and St. Matthews (5.6%), per Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Kentucky's Q2 2026 report.
How much does office space rent for in Louisville?
About $19 per square foot per year on average, full service. Suburban Class A averaged $21.06, and Class A in St. Matthews asked $23.50.
Is now a good time to buy a suburban office building?
It can be. Several large suburban buildings have recently sold and more are expected to come to market, which gives buyers options. Underwrite carefully: run the numbers on our cap rate calculator and see our office investment page.
Can Winner Realty help me lease or buy office space?
Yes. Search listings on our commercial property search, meet the team on our commercial team page, or book a time.
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