Central Business District is a prime-tier Class A submarket of Washington DC with average asking rent around $60/sqft/yr.
K Street's traditional law and lobbying spine. · Tier: prime · Avg rent: $60/sqft/yr
The traditional CBD along K Street remains DC's largest contiguous Class A submarket. Older trophy stock dominates; selective new construction and full-floor repositioning is active.
Law firms, trade associations, lobbying, government affairs.
15–40,000 sqft floor plates available across newer Class A stock; 9'+ slab-to-slab and modern MEP common.
Farragut North, Farragut West, McPherson Square.
Multi-modal transit captures the metro's principal professional catchment.
Farragut Square, McPherson Square, Connecticut Avenue retail.
Central Business District is one of 6 Class A submarkets we cover in Washington DC, classified as prime tier with an average asking rent around $60/sqft/yr. Compared with the broader Washington DC Class A stock, Central Business District typically attracts Law firms, trade associations, lobbying, government affairs and competes most directly with the city's other prime submarkets on building specification, transit access, and amenitisation.
Adjacent submarkets to study alongside Central Business District: East End, NoMa, Southwest Waterfront, Georgetown & West End. The full Washington DC submarket atlas is at /cities/washington-dc.
For an institutional Class A occupier evaluating Central Business District, the highest-leverage analyses to commission next are the rent benchmark, the concession-package comparable, and the ESG performance baseline. Class A Atlas covers each as a dedicated topic page for this submarket:
Terminology specific to Washington DC Class A leasing and to the prime tier: Class A, Trophy asset, Effective rent, Concession package, TI allowance, Submarket tier.
Reviewed by Miriam Hollander — Lead market analyst. Last updated 2026-04-15. See our methodology and editorial standards.