Commercial Real Estate Market in Sterling, VA
Updated monthly: sale, lease, property records, location trend, and more… · Last update: October 31
124 active listings and 1,978 off-market properties in Sterling, VA. Commercial property asks $300/SF to buy and $20.50/SF/Yr to lease.
Market Trends
Sterling, VA spans 44.6 square miles in Loudoun County, Virginia. Figures below refresh monthly; last updated 31 October 2026.
Office
Office vacancy in Sterling, VA runs 20.2% across the South region in 2025, up from 14.4% in 2019.
Retail
Retail vacancy in Sterling, VA runs 5.4% across the South region in 2025, down from 7% in 2020.
Industrial
Industrial vacancy in Sterling, VA runs 7.9% across the South region in 2025, up from 6% in 2019. Nearly 2.3x the 2022 low of 3.5%.
Multifamily
Multifamily vacancy in Sterling, VA runs 11.3% across the South region in 2025, up from 8.5% in 2022.
Market overview
Demographics & Economy
Sterling, VA has 88,829 residents in 30,660 households. Density runs 1,990 people per square mile. Median household income here is $152,927 and median gross rent $2,233 a month.
Tools
Lease vs Buy Breakeven
At $20.50/SF/Yr lease vs $300/SF buy → buying wins if held > 3.4 years.
At a 6.8% gross asking yield the payback reads short relative to leasing. Assumes 30% down at 6.5% fixed, 2% a year in taxes and upkeep, 3% appreciation, 5% opportunity cost, 2% closing plus 5% selling costs, and a 3% annual rent escalator.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median price per square foot for commercial property in Sterling?
How much does it cost to lease commercial space in Sterling?
Is it cheaper to lease or buy commercial space in Sterling?
Where does Realmo's Sterling market data come from?
Methodology & data sources
- Asking prices and medians
- There are 49 active for-sale and 75 active for-lease listings in Sterling, VA. The medians are based on 25 of the for-sale and 24 of the for-lease listings, those that state a price or rent per square foot. These are ASKING figures from live listings, not closed-transaction prices, and a figure resting on fewer than 10 listings says so where it is quoted.
- Vacancy rates
- Published per-sector market series, taken at the metro level where one exists and otherwise at the Census-region level — a chart reading "in <region> region" is a regional number, not this city's.
- Refresh
- The monthly aggregates close at the end of the previous month, so 31 October 2026 — not today — is the honest last update.
- Known limitations
- office vacancy is reported at South region level, retail vacancy is reported at South region level and industrial vacancy is reported at South region level.
- Coverage
- Metrics below the 10-observation threshold fall back one geographic level. The geography used is named on each figure.
Compiled by the Realmo Data team · reviewed 31 October 2026 · How Realmo checks market page data · Report a data issue
