Office Space for Rent in Washington, DC - 601 Listings

Washington, DC - Green Office Space

While only 34% of Washington D.C. office buildings larger than 50,000 square feet are LEED-certified, that percentage is growing. As of mid-2017, approximately 9.5 million square feet of office space are in the process of obtaining LEED Certification, on all levels.

The U.S. Green Buildings Council is, itself, headquartered in Washington D.C., at 2101 L Street NW, which is a redeveloped Class A office property, originally built in 1975.

On a nationwide scale, certified and proposed LEED properties account for roughly 22% of total U.S. office inventory, across key metro markets in all 50 states. As major investors continue to pursue green certification for their assets, the green office trend advances upwards. With its sturdy historic architecture, the D.C. office market is prime for valuable redevelopment and asset repositioning projects.

The 2017 National Green Building Adoption Index looked at commercial office properties in 30 major U.S. markets and found that, including EPA Energy Star labeled-buildings, the percentage of green certification has increased from under 5% in 2005 to 38%, as of mid-2017. Washington D.C. placed eighth in this annual survey, for the third consecutive year.

Washington, DC's Top Office-Using Sectors

Because the governmental sector dominates one third of the region’s economy, the D.C. office market’s general stability and predictable long-term performance attract investors from around the world, making Greater D.C. the sixth-largest metropolitan economy in the U.S.

As it continues to diversify, the Washington D.C. office market welcomes and accommodates an ever-growing number of businesses that are not directly related to government, such as education, finance, law, media, tourism, technology, and scientific research.

• Education – Higher learning institutions, like the renowned University of the District of Columbia, George Washington University, Georgetown University and Howard University, greatly contribute to Washington D.C.’s high rate of office-using employment.
• Finance – The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and Fortune 500 company The Carlyle Group are headquartered in the nation’s capital.
• Law – renowned law firms Latham & Watkins LLP, Hogan Lovells LLP and Paul Hastings LLP have major D.C. operations.
• Media – D.C. is home to National Geographic’s world headquarters, as well as Atlantic Media, and Interface Media Group.
• Technology and Scientific research – largest representatives in this sector include global technology innovator conglomerate Danaher Corp. and public utility and energy solutions company WGL Holdings, Inc.