Rental prices for commercial properties of up to 200 square meters rose 11.26% in Brazil over the last 12 months, according to the FipeZap Commercial Index for July 2026, released on Tuesday (25). The increase is well above official inflation as measured by the IPCA index (4.44%) and more than four times the variation of the IGP-M (2.76%), the price index traditionally used to adjust rental contracts in Brazil, newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported.
Sale prices told a different story. The average asking price for these units rose only 2.05% in 12 months, below inflation, which means a loss of value in real terms on the national average. The index puts the average sale price at R$ 8,792 per square meter and the average rent at R$ 53.68 per square meter.
All ten cities tracked by the indicator recorded rent increases over the period. Rio de Janeiro leads with a rise of 21.34%, followed by Salvador (18.86%), Curitiba (12.85%), Belo Horizonte (8.79%), São Paulo (7.82%) and Brasília (7.66%). In São Paulo, the largest market in the sample, the average rent reached R$ 61.74 per square meter in July, while the average sale price stood at R$ 10,602 per square meter, up just 1.94% in 12 months.
"These differences reinforce the importance of looking at the local market before making a decision to buy, sell or rent. More than the national average, factors such as demand, property availability and the economic dynamics of each city help determine price behavior," Mariangela Silva, an economist at Grupo OLX, told Folha.
The gap between rents and purchase prices raised the projected return for investors who buy commercial units for income. The segment's average rental yield reached 7.59% per year in July, above the 6.14% estimated for residential properties, though still below the projected return on financial investments, according to the report.
Despite the accumulated increase, the monthly pace has slowed. According to real estate portal Portas, which also covered the index, monthly commercial rent growth fell from 1.38% in June to 0.56% in July, with a cumulative rise of 7.42% so far in 2026.