Wall Street Journal, Aug. 8, 2017–Esther Fung (subscription)Last week, the top mall operators delivered a blunt message to short sellers and naysayers who had expected more gloom for landlords in the bricks-and-mortar retail business: Don’t count us out just yet.
Category: Top National News
The Best Place for a New Warehouse? An Old Mall
Wall Street Journal, Aug. 8, 2017–Esther Fung (subscription)The pressure for speedy online package delivery is prompting companies to look for distribution facilities closer to residential areas or highways. Some of the best locations, it turns out, are dead malls.
Real Estate Crowdfunding Platforms Work to Find a Niche
National Real Estate Investor, Aug. 9, 2017–Beth Mattson-TeigWhile commercial real estate crowdfunding firms haven’t disrupted the market, the top players have worked to continue to raise capital and find ways to make their bets.
Commercial and Multifamily Originations Record Q2 Upswing
National Mortgage Professional, Aug. 1, 2017–Phil HallCommercial and multifamily mortgage originations during the second quarter experienced a 28 percent spike from the first quarter and a 20 percent boost from one year earlier, according to new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Senate Appropriations Committee Housing Bill Saves Doomed Affordable Housing Programs
HousingWire, Aug. 1, 2017–Brena SwansonThe Senate Committee on Appropriations unanimously approved the fiscal year 2018 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which with allots significantly more money to affordable housing programs than what President Donald Trump’s budget requested.
Fed’s Fischer: Weak Economy is Keeping Interest Rates Low
CNBC, July 31, 2017–Jeff CoxIn a speech Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer said low interest rates send “a powerful signal that the growth potential of the economy may be limited.”
Life Insurers Smell Opportunity in CRE, Multifamily Lending
American Banker, Aug. 1, 2017–Laura Alix (subscription)Life insurance companies are trying to chip away at banks’ dominant market share in commercial real estate lending, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.
New York Apartment Vacancies Projected to Soar
Wall Street Journal, Aug. 1, 2017–Josh Barbanel (subscription)A new report predicts New York City apartment vacancy rates will soar to more than 11% by the end of next year. The scenario, which some local housing analysts rejected, would mean a grim reckoning for landlords.
Pullback Continues in the Investment Sales Market for Apartment Properties
National Real Estate Investor, Aug. 1, 2017–Bendix AndersonInvestors spent a lot less money on apartment properties so far this year compared to 2016, but prices in the sector keep rising anyway.
What Bank Of The Ozarks’ Stock Drop Has To Do With Commercial Real Estate
Forbes, Aug. 2, 2017–Ely RazinIn its commercial real estate financing, Bank of the Ozarks has shown particularly strong involvement in construction lending–which tends to be both riskier than standard CRE financing and offer higher returns–even as other banks by and large have been reducing construction lending.