News Summary
The Greater Boston life sciences real estate market is currently experiencing unprecedented vacancy levels, with 17 million square feet available. New lab space deliveries without tenants are driving this surge, reflecting a significant decline in demand from 8 million square feet in 2021 to just 2.8 million square feet now. Venture capital investment in Boston’s biotech sector has also plummeted, signaling a challenging outlook for the industry amid economic uncertainties and rising federal funding concerns. Analysts predict that vacancy rates will continue to rise, placing further pressure on Boston’s life sciences real estate landscape.
Boston – The Greater Boston life sciences real estate market is grappling with its most turbulent period ever, as availability for lab and life sciences space skyrockets to unprecedented levels. Currently, there are 17 million square feet of total available space across the metro, marking a significant increase from the previous year.
This surge in availability is largely due to new buildings being delivered without any tenants. In the first half of 2025, a total of 643,000 square feet of new lab space was introduced to the market completely vacant. The direct availability of lab space has now reached 13.4 million square feet, pushing the overall availability rate to 29.7%. This figure reflects an 8.6 percentage point increase compared to the same period last year.
Underlying this vacancy crisis is the sharp decline in demand for lab space. Interest has fallen dramatically from 8 million square feet sought in 2021 to just 2.8 million square feet currently. The decrease in demand, coupled with speculative construction, has led to an oversaturation of the market.
Boston’s biotechnology sector is in a precarious position. Venture capital investment has plummeted to only $3.3 billion for Boston-based biotech firms in the first half of 2025, representing the slowest two quarters since the COVID-19 pandemic began. As a result, company valuations in the biotech sector have dropped sharply. The S&P Biotech Index has also seen a staggering 50% decline from its peak in 2021, while initial public offerings (IPOs) have virtually dried up, with only one recorded IPO, that of Sionna Therapeutics, this year.
Broad economic challenges compound the situation. Concerns surrounding potential cuts to funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and staffing reductions at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have further diminished investor confidence. The report from MassBio outlines alarming long-term implications for the biotech sector, emphasizing the pressing need for investors and firms to adapt.
Geographically, Boston itself has added 6.7 million square feet of life sciences inventory since 2019, with over 4 million square feet currently sitting vacant. The city’s life sciences availability rate now surpasses 38%, and more than half of the 2 million square feet of lab space expected to be delivered in the next two years is presently unleased. Neighborhoods like Downtown and Allston/Brighton have reported negligible net absorption, while the Seaport area has seen substantial increases in lab space.
Meanwhile, Cambridge faces its own challenges, with an availability rate of 22.9% and 2.7 million square feet available in East Cambridge alone. Despite these issues, the leasing activity in Cambridge appears somewhat stronger, highlighted by notable contracts such as Biogen’s acquisition of 580,000 square feet and Intellia Therapeutics’ lease of 101,000 square feet.
In the suburban areas surrounding Boston, a worrying trend is emerging with 30.5% of suburban inventory now available. The area has faced five consecutive quarters of negative absorption, suggesting a growing distress in the suburban life sciences market.
The broader economic climate remains fraught with uncertainty. Rising tariffs and inflation serve as ongoing hurdles, and Boston’s job market growth has stagnated at just 0.2% year-over-year—a rate that trails both national and regional trends. Many local institutions have implemented hiring freezes and layoffs due to anticipated cuts in federal funding.
Analysts project that vacancy rates will continue to climb through 2026. With tenants currently enjoying greater negotiation power amid falling rents and increasing concessions, the life sciences market in Boston is poised for further softening. Furthermore, there are still over 3 million square feet currently under construction, with around 40% remaining unleased. The outlook for Boston’s life sciences real estate market is likely to remain challenging in the foreseeable future.
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Additional Resources
- Boston Real Estate Times
- Wikipedia: Life Sciences
- NBC Boston
- Google Search: Boston Life Sciences
- The Real Deal
- Google Scholar: Boston Biotechnology
- Colliers International
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Biotechnology
- GlobeSt
- Google News: Boston Healthcare
- Axios Boston
Author: STAFF HERE BOSTON WRITER
BOSTON STAFF WRITER The BOSTON STAFF WRITER represents the experienced team at HEREBoston.com, your go-to source for actionable local news and information in Boston, Suffolk County, and beyond. Specializing in "news you can use," we cover essential topics like product reviews for personal and business needs, local business directories, politics, real estate trends, neighborhood insights, and state news affecting the area—with deep expertise drawn from years of dedicated reporting and strong community input, including local press releases and business updates. We deliver top reporting on high-value events such as Boston Marathon, Head of the Charles Regatta, and Boston Harborfest. Our coverage extends to key organizations like the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and Associated Industries of Massachusetts, plus leading businesses in finance, biotech, and insurance that power the local economy such as Fidelity Investments, Biogen, and Liberty Mutual Insurance. As part of the broader HERE network, we provide comprehensive, credible insights into Massachusetts's dynamic landscape.
