Taco Bell's 254,162-square-foot lease is Orange County's largest in five years

Taco Bell signed a 254,162-square-foot lease at Irvine Company's Alton HQ, the largest Orange County office lease in five years, according to third-quarter JLL data reported by Commercial Observer. The tenant plans to leave its current Irvine headquarters in 2028. The deal led about 1.55 million square feet of leases signed in the quarter.

Total vacancy tightened to 15.4 percent from 17.1 percent a year earlier, and average asking rents rose to $3.02 per square foot per month from $2.90 at the end of 2025. Net absorption slipped in the quarter but remains positive for the year at 265,394 square feet, compared with negative 158,099 square feet for all of 2025.

Envista Holdings signed for 101,800 square feet across three buildings, and an unnamed aerospace company took 173,057 square feet across two Airport Area properties, including 102,417 square feet at 4000 MacArthur Boulevard. South County posted the strongest quarterly absorption at 86,107 square feet, with Irvine Company's Irvine Spectrum campus contributing 133,115 square feet; several other submarkets recorded losses.

No new office completions have been recorded in Orange County this year. The only project under construction is a 168,137-square-foot building at the Anaheim Ducks' $5 billion mixed-use development, expected to deliver in the fourth quarter and 23 percent pre-leased. Conversions are also removing space from the market.

The pattern of a few large tenants filling premium buildings while other submarkets shed occupancy echoes our August report on Irvine Company's Chicago portfolio, which was 87 percent leased on premium-space demand. With no 2026 completions and one building in the pipeline, landlords of existing top-tier space likely retain pricing power.