How much does commercial real estate cost in Melbourne, Florida?

Costs vary by property type. Office space leases for $14 to $28 per square foot per year. Retail space runs $14 to $30 per square foot NNN. Industrial and warehouse space leases for $8 to $16 per square foot NNN. Commercial land ranges from $3 to $40 per square foot depending on zoning and entitlement status.

Do I need a commercial broker in Brevard County?

You are not legally required to use a broker, but tenant representation is free to you. The landlord pays the commission whether you have representation or not. A commercial broker provides market data, off-market access, and negotiates terms that most tenants would not know to request.

What is a NNN lease in commercial real estate?

A NNN (triple net) lease requires you to pay base rent plus three additional expenses: property taxes, building insurance, and common area maintenance (CAM). This is the standard lease structure for retail and industrial properties in Brevard County. NNN charges typically add $3 to $10 per square foot.

What is a 1031 exchange in Florida?

A 1031 exchange lets you defer capital gains taxes by selling one investment property and purchasing another like-kind property. You have 45 days to identify replacement properties and 180 days to complete the purchase. Florida has no state income tax, making 1031 exchanges here particularly advantageous.

What areas does Reach Commercial Real Estate serve?

Reach Commercial serves all of Brevard County including Melbourne, West Melbourne, Palm Bay, Viera, Suntree, Rockledge, Cocoa, Titusville, Merritt Island, Cocoa Beach, Cape Canaveral, and surrounding communities on Florida's Space Coast.

L3Harris $100M Palm Bay Expansion Adds 100 Jobs to High-Tech Corridor

Cassandra Hartford
May 13
4 min read

L3Harris Technologies is committing $100 million to expand its Palm Bay High-Tech Center campus, creating 100 new jobs in Brevard County. According to Spectrum News 13, the expansion directly supports America's Golden Dome missile defense initiative. For Palm Bay's commercial real estate market, this is not a press release. It is a demand signal.

The L3Harris Palm Bay expansion represents exactly the kind of anchor tenant activity that pulls an entire submarket forward. Defense contractors do not make $100 million capital commitments on a whim. They make them because they have multi-year contracts in hand and workforce projections that require physical space. When a company this size doubles down on a location, the ripple effects hit industrial, office, and retail sectors within a five-mile radius.

What We Know About the L3Harris Palm Bay Expansion

Per Spectrum News 13, L3Harris is investing $100 million into its existing Palm Bay High-Tech Center operations. The project will generate 100 new positions in Brevard County. The expansion supports the Golden Dome program, a national missile defense initiative that has become a priority for the federal government. L3Harris already operates significant facilities in the Palm Bay corridor, making this an expansion of existing footprint rather than a greenfield development.

The timing matters. Defense spending on missile defense and space-based assets has accelerated over the past 18 months. Brevard County sits at the center of that spending, with Cape Canaveral operations driving a substantial portion of aerospace activity on the East Coast. L3Harris is positioning itself to capture contract revenue that requires boots on the ground in Florida, not just engineering talent in other states.

Why This Matters for Brevard Commercial Real Estate

A $100 million expansion by a Fortune 500 defense contractor does three things to a local CRE market. First, it absorbs available industrial and flex space in the immediate area as subcontractors and suppliers cluster near the anchor tenant. Second, it creates demand for supporting retail and services, everything from restaurants to childcare to professional services. Third, it validates the submarket for other institutional investors considering the area.

Palm Bay's High-Tech Corridor has been building momentum for years. The Melbourne Orlando International Airport sits nearby. I-95 access is straightforward. Land costs remain below what you would pay in Cocoa Beach or Melbourne proper. For industrial users who need room to grow, Palm Bay offers the square footage and the zoning flexibility that tighter coastal markets cannot match.

One hundred new jobs sounds modest for a $100 million investment. But these are not warehouse positions. Defense contractor jobs in this sector tend to be engineering, manufacturing, and technical roles with average salaries well above the county median. Those workers need housing, they spend locally, and they create secondary employment in services sectors. The multiplier effect on a deal like this is significant.

RCRE Take

I have watched defense contractors move in and out of Brevard for 17 years. The ones that expand are the ones that have locked in contract revenue. L3Harris is not speculating here. They have visibility into their order book, and that order book says Palm Bay is where the work gets done. When a tenant of this caliber makes a nine-figure commitment to a specific campus, every property owner within a two-mile radius should be reassessing their hold period.

For industrial landlords in Palm Bay, this expansion tightens an already competitive market. Flex space users who have been sitting on expired leases are about to face renewal terms that reflect the new demand reality. If you own industrial product in the Palm Bay High-Tech Corridor and you have been thinking about selling, your window to capture maximum value just got clearer. If you are a buyer looking for industrial or flex space near the L3Harris campus, your timeline just accelerated.

The Golden Dome program is not a one-year initiative. It is a multi-decade national security priority. That means L3Harris is not going anywhere, and the suppliers and subcontractors who need proximity to their operations are not going anywhere either. Brevard's industrial market has another anchor tenant doubling down at exactly the right time.

Submarket Context

Palm Bay's High-Tech Corridor has seen steady absorption over the past two years. The Project Autobahn announcement at Melbourne Airport signaled institutional interest in large-scale industrial development in the broader south Brevard market. L3Harris's expansion reinforces that trajectory. For current availability in Brevard County industrial and flex properties, see our commercial investments listings. Industrial vacancy in Brevard has been tightening, and this deal will accelerate that trend in Palm Bay specifically.

If you are buying, selling, or leasing industrial or flex space in Palm Bay or south Brevard, call before you sign anything. Defense contractor expansion deals like this one change the negotiating calculus for every transaction in the submarket. Reach out at 321-514-0876 or contact us directly to discuss what this means for your property or search.