As the world heats up, returning to the office cools down—at least in Austin, home of “weirdos” and Silicon Valley transplants. The city experienced its biggest drop in office occupancy since property management and security firm Kastle Systems began tracking major metro areas in 2020, decreasing from 68% in early March to 57% the week ending July 21.
Just a year ago, Austin was the Emerald City for pro-office CEOs. While New York City execs struggled to get workers back at their desks, bosses in Austin seemed to be doing just fine—the city had the highest in-office rates in May 2022, according to previous Kastle data. So what explains this year's decline? Labor market shifts in the tech sector, workers' consistent desire for flexibility, and the boiling Texas heat, Bloomberg reports.
