Coastal Virginia’s commercial real estate (CRE) sector thrived in 2024, leveraging regional strengths that spurred population growth for the first time since the pandemic. With more military assets than any MSA in the world and local outposts of seven of the ten largest global defense contractors, the region drew $68.5 billion in defense spending, according to the DOD. Completion of a $450 million dredging project at the Port of Virginia enabled two-way traffic for the world’s largest container ships. A skilled and disciplined labor pool of retired military and world-class logistics infrastructure continue to attract investment. South Korean cable manufacturer LS Greenlink announced it will occupy a $681 million, 750,000-square-foot plant in Chesapeake. The region also boasts a cost of living 5.2% below the national average and a 3.0% unemployment rate, outperforming the national rate of 4.1%.

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