News & Insights
NEWS & MEDIA
Columbia Metropolitan Airport and Magnus Development Partners announce new multimodal industrial development
Colliers' industrial brokerage team to handle marketing and leasing for the project
MARKET Research
q2 2026: Columbia industrial report
Manufacturing growth drives demand as aging inventory challenges the market.
Key Takeaways:
- The average vacant space in the market was built in 1982, reflecting an excess of functionally-challenging inventory in an era where heavy power and high clear heights drive tenant requirements.
- Vacancy continues to tick upwards despite manufacturing-driven positive absorption as older spaces shed occupancy, driving home a pressing need for new speculative construction.
- Class A availability remains severely restricted, with the market unable to cover immediate-occupancy requirements for modern bulk space.
- Strong workforce availability was highlighted by a reported 17,000+ applications for Scout Motors’ first tranche of production jobs. Skilled labor continues to attract manufacturing investment, including Ferrara’s $675M announcement in Orangeburg County.
q4 2025: south carolina industrial report
Building bulk demand highlights market's momentum into 2026
Key Takeaways:
- 11,358,546 square feet of net absorption throughout 2025 lowered vacancy by 276 basis points
- Much of the market’s bulk inventory has been absorbed as users look towards potential build-to-suit starts
- Strong Class A rent growth anticipated for 2026 as speculative construction lags demand
MARKET Resources
centralsc alliance
As a public and private alliance, CentralSC Alliance's mission is to cultivate and nurture the prosperity of Central South Carolina. They help businesses create jobs, recruit capital investment, and together with a growing network of industries, talent, and communities, they’re advancing and improving the region’s economy.
south carolina department of commerce
From assisting with the location of new sites and buildings to offering grants for community development and infrastructure improvement, the South Carolina Department of Commerce is here to help grow new and existing businesses. SC Commerce promotes economic opportunity for individuals and businesses through initiatives like workforce training.
LEXINGTON COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
In Lexington County, our well-prepared, 21st century workforce is due to the tremendous support of government, business and educational leaders all working together to support new and existing industry in our region. Our success is reflected in the increased growth of the County’s population within the last decade, which is projected to reach more than 333,000 by 2030. Due to our high level of work-readiness and innovative workforce education and training programs, Lexington County is the perfect place for advanced manufacturing, automotive, aerospace, healthcare, agribusiness and more.
Columbia Metropolitan Airport
Columbia Metropolitan Airport is a major economic engine for South Carolina’s Midlands region. As a self-sufficient entity, the airport doesn’t take any state and local tax dollars yet generates an estimated $847 million for the state of South Carolina. Over 40 businesses operate on the airport’s campus and create a combined total of over 1,871 full time jobs with a direct payroll of nearly $80 million. Local support of CAE helps the airport continue to put more dollars back into the local economy and it allows the airport to compete for bigger planes, new air service and better fares.
