According to Trump’s announcement, only about 6% of federal employees are currently working in-person full-time. The shift back to office work is expected to significantly impact not only federal employees but also the commercial real estate market.
Implications for Real Estate and Washington, D.C.
The return-to-office mandate arrives amid a commercial real estate sector struggling with declining property values due to remote work trends. Office landlords, particularly those with federal government leases, stand to gain from the policy change.
Washington, D.C., where the federal government leases approximately 45 million square feet of office space, is among the cities most affected. The city’s Democratic mayor, Muriel Bowser, had previously urged the Biden administration to repurpose underused office spaces or mandate a return to in-person work. Trump’s decision aligns with the concerns of both real estate stakeholders and policymakers advocating for a revitalized downtown.
Federal Departments and Future Changes
Eric Scott Turner, Trump’s nominee to lead the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, expressed support for the executive order during a Senate Banking Committee hearing. He pledged to return all of HUD’s 8,097 employees to the office, aligning with the president’s broader policy goals.
