CBRE · Earnings call · 2026Q3T · Full report

Data Center Demand and Land Sales

CBRE GROUP, INC. · 2026-10-22 · Importance 26 · Surprise 24

Management said higher borrowing costs and uncertainty could put pressure on the pace of new data-center construction, although the current buildout remains very large. It is already seeing substantial refitting of existing data centers, which is a significant part of CBRE’s business. Management expects data-center growth outside the U.S. to accelerate if U.S. activity slows, and said Onnec strengthens CBRE’s ability to serve those markets. CBRE has more than 20 sites under control that could be sold as data-center sites, is seeking additional sites, and described land sales as a recurring but highly uneven activity tied largely to hyperscaler demand.

Key facts

• CBRE is actively seeking new data center sites and expects site identification, entitlement, and power provision to remain an ongoing part of its business.
• CBRE said more than 20 data center sites under its control could potentially be sold as data center sites.
• CBRE said higher interest rates and economic uncertainty could pressure new data center construction, while remaining at an enormous level.
• CBRE said it was already seeing substantial refitting of existing data centers, an area representing a big part of its business.
• CBRE said data center land sales are recurring but not ratable, and could have six or nine months with no sales followed by a quarter with substantial sales.
• CBRE said higher interest rates and economic uncertainty may affect data center construction globally, but that growth could accelerate outside the United States if U.S. data center activity slows.
• Data center land sales in CBRE's development business would be in addition to its projected infrastructure services revenue.
• CBRE said data center land sales depend mainly on underlying hyperscaler and business demand and cannot be forecast quarter by quarter or year by year.