Commercial real estate sales across Northern and Central New Jersey reached $1.4 billion in the first half of 2026, maintaining stable volume consistent with Spring 2025 performance despite a slight dip in overall transaction counts, according to Woodbridge-based NAI DiLeo-Bram & Co. (NAIDB) newly released First Half (H1) 2026 Commercial Real Estate Market Report.
Across the region, most counties traded near or below their five-year historical averages. However, Middlesex County once again emerged as a top economic anchor, outperforming all other submarkets with $462 million in total sales volume and capturing the region’s largest individual industrial, retail, and office trades (excluding a massive regional exception).
The industrial market vastly outperformed other asset classes this spring, generating $912 million in sales—surpassing the office and retail sectors combined and accounting for roughly 65% of total regional volume.
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The Anheuser-Busch Blockbuster: The largest transaction of the period was the sale of the landmark 1.7-million-square-foot Anheuser-Busch Brewery. Sold by Anheuser-Busch to industrial developer Goodman Group for $360 million ($212/SF), the 86-acre Essex County property stands as one of the area’s most significant redevelopment opportunities. This mega-sale heavily skewed Essex County metrics well above historical norms.
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Eastpoint Distribution Sale: Another major industrial trade featured the 450,000-square-foot Class A distribution facility at 1065 Cranbury Road in Middlesex County. Fully leased by Iron Mountain, the property was sold by Morgan Stanley to Property Reserve for $138 million.
Market metrics highlight a rapidly widening price divergence between big-box logistics centers and smaller industrial footprints. While historical 2021–2022 data showed only a modest 36% price differential between the two formats, the gap blew past 200% by 2026. Buildings exceeding 100,000 square feet averaged $110/SF, whereas properties under 100,000 square feet averaged $360/SF. Analysts attribute this trend to a cooling of pandemic-era peaks for massive warehouses versus consistent, steady demand for smaller spaces driven by e-commerce firms.
Office sales totaled $263 million for Spring 2026, stabilizing a sector that has hovered around $300 million in total H1 volume annually since 2022 (down sharply from $1.1 billion highs).
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30 Knightsbridge Road: The largest office trade involved a 686,000-square-foot, four-building office campus acquired by Saadia Group from Keystone Property for $56 million. Having traded 12 years prior for roughly $55 million, the sale underscores flat long-term appreciation for suburban corporate parks over the past decade.
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Adaptive Reuse: Demonstrating shifting property dynamics, a 317,000-square-foot office property at 5 Wood Hollow Road was purchased by Deugen Development, which plans to demolish the structure in early 2027 to execute an office-to-industrial conversion.
Retail real estate held firm, recording approximately $233 million in sales to closely track Spring 2025 performance.
The highlight of the retail sector occurred in February with the $84 million sale of the MidState Mall. The transaction formed part of a larger $440 million portfolio recapitalization between Acadia Realty Trust and TPG Real Estate, structured so that TPG acquired an 80% interest while Acadia stays on to manage the assets.
