Few vacant retail spaces in Snohomish County

EVERETT – The retail vacancy rate in Snohomish County remained low at 3.4 percent in the last quarter of 2025, a number that has fluctuated only slightly over the last several years, according to an analysis by real estate brokerage firm Kidder Matthews.

The low rate is attributable to a lack of new shopping center construction, which is putting a premium on existing retail spaces, said Ned Whalen, a commercial real estate broker with Kidder Matthews, in an interview.

“People aren’t building retail like they used to,” he said. “Supply and demand are the biggest drivers of a low vacancy rate.”

Whalen pointed to the high cost of construction as a major factor in the lack of new retail space, adding that while construction costs have moderated recently, they remain high due to inflation and material shortages.

He said developers cannot get the rent they need from retail tenants to make new retail construction sustainable, and available land for new construction isn’t plentiful, either.

“We are constrained by geographical aspects of Western Washington such as water, mountains, hills,” he said.

Whalen said fluctuations in the vacancy rate have been less than 1% since 2019.

Shannon Affholter, chair of the Runstad Department of Real Estate at the University of Washington, said in a text message that Snohomish County’s low retail vacancy rate reflects the prolonged lack of new construction.

“Higher construction costs, along with a longer and more complex approval process at the municipal level and uncertainty about how much space retailers are willing to lease, have discouraged developers from adding new space, leaving existing properties with little capacity to absorb additional tenants,” he said.

Whalen said a bright spot for the county, despite an uncertain national economic picture, is that retail and restaurant chains still want to locate in the county, given its growing population.

Some national chains are competing for the limited space in Snohomish County, Whalen said, including International House of Pancakes, 7-Eleven and Tumbles. On the other hand, older chains, including Kentucky Fried Chicken and Jack in the Box, will close some locations in Snohomish County in the coming year, to be replaced by new franchise food outlets, he said.

Jack in the Box announced in April 2025 that it would close 150-200 underperforming restaurants but did not name the locations.

IHOP and Jack in the Box officials did not respond to emails seeking comment on potential closures.

The Kidder Matthews figures aren’t broken down by Snohomish County communities, and not all vacant retail spaces have been quickly filled. The large Fred Meyer supermarket on Evergreen Way in South Everett remains vacant after its closure in October 2025, as does the Walmart on the same street, which closed in 2023.

Randy Diamond: 425-339-3097; randy.diamond@heraldnet.com.