U.S. companies made significant progress in the past year in achieving their office attendance goals and enforcing their attendance policies, moving closer to cementing long-term work guidelines than at any time since the pandemic upended traditional work routines in 2020.
CBRE’s 2025 Americas Office Occupier Sentiment Survey of office-using companies found that 72% of the 184 companies canvassed say they have met their attendance goals, up from 61% last year.
The share of companies monitoring attendance jumped to 69% this year from 45% last year, and those enforcing attendance policies rose to 37% from 17%. The latest rates represent the highest in five years.
“These increases show that companies have made significant progress on establishing a new baseline for work habits and office attendance after five years of adapting to hybrid work,” said Manish Kashyap, CBRE’s global president of leasing. “Having employers and employees closer to being on the same page now than in the previous couple of years gives both more clarity going forward. That benefits operational efficiency and space planning.”
That’s not to say that office attendance now matches pre-pandemic levels. Surveyed companies reported that they want employees in the office an average of 3.2 days per week. Actual attendance is close to that at 2.9 days a week.
This improved clarity on office attendance has many companies anticipating an expansion of their office footprints. Sixty-seven percent of companies said they will either keep their office footprints at the same size or expand them within the next three years, up from 64% last year. Meanwhile, 33% anticipate contraction, down from 36% last year and 53% in 2023.
The most common reason cited for expansion (83% of respondents) is expected business or headcount growth. CBRE conducted the survey from March to May of 2025.
“Companies have demonstrated a commitment to the office, just in a different format,” said Julie Whelan, CBRE’s global head of occupier research. “For many, office footprints now are smaller but more effective and better tailored for collaborative work. Employers are much more focused now than they were pre-pandemic on quality of workplace experience, the efficiency of seat sharing, and the vibrancy of the districts in which they’re located.”
Other key findings of the survey include:
- Lease renewals are still popular. Eighty-six percent of companies say they plan to renew their lease upon its expiration, down from 92% last year. Renewals account for roughly 40% of leasing activity this year in comparison to 30% in 2018-2019.
- Employee convenience, especially in relation to their commutes, is a big factor in leasing decisions. The two most favored, must-have building amenities are close proximity to public transportation (53%) and nearby car parking (52%). Next in the hierarchy are food and beverage options (39%), indoor air quality (35%), and sustainable building features and operations (26%).
- Nearly half of companies say they are concerned about availability of high-quality office space over the next three years. That concern focuses mostly on prime space, which accounts for only 8% of the total office inventory and has much lower vacancy than the office market as a whole.
- The flex-office sector is poised for incremental growth, with more small companies transitioning into flex space and larger companies incrementally expanding their use of flex space over the next two years.
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