Mortgage REITs are Enjoying a Renaissance

MarketWatch, Apr. 26, 2016–Riquier, Andrea
As the housing market recovers, investors are taking another look at some of the investments derived from bets on mortgage credit. Real estate investment trusts that buy mortgage-backed securities and other income-producers may be ready for their moment.

Regulators to Call for Banks to Have Year’s Worth of Liquidity

Wall Street Journal, Apr. 25, 2016–Borak, Donna
Large U.S. banks would have to prove they have enough cash to withstand severe market turmoil lasting as long as a year under a new rule set to be proposed Tuesday.

Down Market Presents Surprising Opportunities for Commercial Deals

Commercial Observer, Apr. 25, 2016–Mandell, David
Mandell said the economy is on the cusp of an economic downturn. “We’re at a stage where the commercial real estate community has to make a choice: fall victim to the state of the market as we have in years past, or start planning for a down market and adopt unique strategies that will drive commercial sales regardless of the state of the economy.”

Department Stores Need to Cull Hundreds of Sites, Study Say

Wall Street Journal, Apr. 24, 2016–Kapner, Susan
Department stores need to close hundreds of locations if they want to regain the productivity they had a decade ago, according to new research from Green Street Advisors. The real-estate research firm estimates that the closures could include nearly 800 department stores, or about a fifth of all anchor space in U.S. malls.

Developers Are Turning Rust Belt Hulks Into Luxury Hotels

Bloomberg News, Apr. 22, 2016–Clark, Patrick
Developers have started to leverage adaptive reuse over the past three years, leading to creative conversions across the U.S., often from vacant or underutilized office buildings to full-service, lifestyle and select-service hotels.

Blackstone Now Owns More Than $100B in Real Estate

The Real Deal (New York), Apr. 21, 2016–Putzier, Konrad
The Blackstone Group’s real estate division passed the $100 billion mark in assets under management in the first quarter, while its earnings recovered slightly from a dip at the end of 2015.

Commercial Real Estate Hits The Pause Button

Richmond Times-Dispatch, Apr. 17, 2016–Little, Andrew Led Zeppelin was discussing the impact of a levee breaking on the last song of the band’s fourth album, but the iconic final words in the song could easily be referring to commercial real estate transaction volume today: “going down, going down now, going down …”