Commercial real estate in Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue calls itself the high-tech and retail center of the Eastside, with about 160,000 jobs.† The city covers more than 33 square miles between Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish. † This page walks the commercial districts one at a time, from Downtown to Crossroads, and tells you which page to read next for office space, buying, zoning and the projects underway.
Last updated October 31, 2026
- Residents, City of Bellevue, July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau estimate)
- 154,193 †
- Square miles, City of Bellevue, between Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish (City of Bellevue)
- More than 33 †
- Median household income, City of Bellevue (2020-2024 American Community Survey)
- $165,576 †
- Unemployment, City of Bellevue, September 2026 (preliminary, BLS modeled estimate)
- 4.8% †
What is Bellevue as a commercial market?
Bellevue's 2044 plan calls for 35,000 more homes and 70,000 more jobs.† The City is aiming that growth primarily at transit-oriented developments such as Wilburton and BelRed. † So when you weigh a site, find out which plan area it sits in first. The station areas are where the rules are changing fastest.
The City calls Downtown "the primary economic and employment center for the city and the region."† Eleanor Boba's essay on HistoryLink.org names Amazon the largest employer in Bellevue as of 2025, followed by T-Mobile and Meta.† The King County Department of Assessments values the whole city as its Area 80. †
Two agencies count residents, on different dates. The Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimate is 154,193 for July 1, 2025.† The state's Office of Financial Management says 158,300 for April 1, 2026. † Quote one or the other, with its date and publisher, rather than setting the two side by side as a trend.
- Official population estimate, City of Bellevue, April 1, 2026 (Washington Office of Financial Management)
- 158,300 †
- Total population, City of Bellevue, 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
- 151,847 †
- Mean travel time to work, workers 16 and over who did not work from home, City of Bellevue, 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
- 23.6 minutes †
- Water area in square miles, City of Bellevue (U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer)
- 4.028 †
Where are Bellevue's commercial districts?
The City sorts its neighborhoods into 16 neighborhood areas. † This page covers the districts the research reaches: Downtown, BelRed with the Spring District, Wilburton, Eastgate and Factoria, and Crossroads.
Learn the name the City uses for your block before you compare rents or read a report. That name tells you which plan, which code chapter and which station area apply.
Downtown Bellevue
Downtown holds City Hall and the Meydenbauer Convention Center.† About 15,657 people live there, by the City's neighborhood count.† The Land Use Code gives Downtown its own chapter, Part 20.25A.† The light rail stop is Bellevue Downtown Station, at 594 110th Ave NE. †
Office vacancy depends on who is measuring. Kidder Mathews put Bellevue's CBD direct vacancy at 19.5% at the end of 3Q 2026, and overall vacancy at 23.7%.† Cushman and Wakefield put overall vacancy in the Bellevue CBD submarket at 25.5%, up 200 bps YOY. † Before you use a vacancy figure in a negotiation, check whether it is direct or overall, and whose definition it is. Office space in Bellevue
BelRed and the Spring District, from light industrial to mixed use
The City is turning BelRed from a light industrial area into mixed-use, transit-oriented neighborhoods.† It already has Overlake Medical Center and Kaiser Permanente Medical Center† and the Global Innovation Exchange (GIX) campus.† BelRed has 2,858 residents, by the City's count. †
The Land Use Code describes a transit-oriented, nodal pattern of jobs and housing that will, over time, replace the area's low intensity light industrial and commercial past.† The City of Bellevue says the Spring District is bringing new residential and office space.† The King County Department of Assessments puts it at 36 acres, or 16 blocks, of the old Spring Industrial District. †
The rules are still moving. The City Council adopted the BelRed Look Forward plan amendment in October 2024.† A public hearing on the matching BelRed Look Forward Land Use Code Amendment (LUCA) was on the agenda for Wednesday, October 28, 2026. † If you own or lease a light industrial building here, read the pending code amendment before you sign a long lease or plan an expansion.
Wilburton and its station area rezone
The City Council started the Wilburton Vision Implementation in April 2022, aiming to turn the transit-oriented area on the west side of Wilburton into a walkable, mixed-use community.† It adopted the plan amendment on July 23, 2024, through Ordinance No. 6802.† The code changes followed in June 2025, through Ordinance 6846. †
The City's consultant, Community Attributes Inc., found the preferred option could fit another 12.0 million square feet of commercial development in the Wilburton study area.† About 4,807 people live in Wilburton today, by the City's count.† Before the towers, Wilburton and downtown were Japanese farmland, the Eastside Heritage Center notes. † Capacity in a plan is not a building. Track the actual applications on the development tracker before you count on what will rise next door.
Eastgate and Factoria, with neighborhood plans in review
The City counts the two areas together, at 10,828 people.† The Eastgate Park and Ride is the transit hub here.† Eastgate also has its own zoning chapter, Part 20.25P, the Eastgate Transit Oriented Development Land Use District. †
Both areas are close to finished neighborhood plans: the City says the process is winding up for Factoria and Eastgate.† A City agenda for Wednesday, September 23, 2026 listed the final review public hearing on the Eastgate Neighborhood Area Plan amendment† and on the Factoria Neighborhood Area Plan amendment. †
The retail history is older than the plans. Crossroads Mall opened in 1962 and Factoria Square in 1977, HistoryLink records.† Factoria joined the city in 1993.† Boeing, long a presence in Eastgate, sold its technology campus there in 2021. †
Crossroads and its shopping center
Crossroads Shopping Center sits at Northeast Eighth Street and 156th Avenue Northeast.† About 14,269 people live in the Crossroads area, by the City's count.† The City even runs a Mini City Hall inside the Crossroads Bellevue mall. †
The council adopted the Crossroads and Newport neighborhood area plans on Oct. 21, 2025. † For a retail or service use here, read the adopted neighborhood plan alongside the zoning. The plan sets what the City will ask for when it reviews a project.
Light rail, bridges and the roads into Bellevue
A February 2024 Sound Transit release said that starting April 27, the 2 Line would serve stations including South Bellevue, East Main, Bellevue Downtown, Wilburton, Spring District and BelRed.† Regular passenger trains started running across Lake Washington on March 28, 2026.† The road link dates to 1940, with the opening of the Lacey V. Murrow floating bridge. †
Distance to a station now matters to tenants and to the code. Check the walk from your door to the platform, not just the drive to the freeway.
Where do I start?
- Market outlook: jobs, vacancy, traffic counts and plans, each with its date, source and geography.
- Development tracker: projects, plans and infrastructure this site follows, grouped by stage.
- Office space: where the office districts are, what brokerage reports say about each, and what the code allows.
- Commercial property for sale: how a purchase works here, including the excise tax and the assessor's calendar.
- Zoning and permits: the land use districts, who reviews a project, and the steps.
- City history: from farms to towers, with a dated timeline.
- City facts: government, plans, neighborhood areas, parks and the ZIP Code tables.
- FAQ: short sourced answers to the questions people search about commercial property here.
Pick the page that matches the decision in front of you, then read the zoning page before you spend money on plans or a lease.
Common questions about commercial real estate in Bellevue, WA
How many people live in Bellevue, WA?
Who are the largest employers in Bellevue?
Amazon, then T-Mobile and Meta. That is the order HistoryLink's essay on Bellevue gives as of 2025. †
How much growth is the City of Bellevue planning for?
What is the office vacancy rate in downtown Bellevue?
How many neighborhood areas does Bellevue have?
Sixteen. The City of Bellevue sorts every neighborhood into one of 16 neighborhood areas. †
Who publishes this site
Daniel Weber, Commercial Real Estate Advisor, Texas real estate sales agent (TREC license 828133) sponsored by DFW Trinity Advisors LLC (SVN | Trinity Advisors, broker license 9004520). Not licensed in Washington; no Washington brokerage services are offered on this site.
This is a research site. It offers no services, carries no listings, and its forms send nothing. Every fact links to its record on the sources page, with the date it was read. Looking for an agent? The FAQ explains who this site names and how to check a license.
Next step
Start with the jobs, vacancy and traffic figures, then come back to the section for your district.
Sources
Every fact on this page carries a dagger that links to its record on the sources page, where the publisher, the date, the address of the document and an archive copy are listed for each one.