Category: News and Trends

Investor sentiment toward real estate should remain positive globally going forward and primary target markets will continue to draw the most interest, predicted Colliers International, Seattle.

U.S. homes nationwide grew by $1.1 trillion in value in 2015, ending the year at $28.5 trillion, reported Zillow Inc., Seattle. 

Non-agency commercial mortgage-backed securities issuance totaled $94.59 billion in 2015, up 6.3 percent compared to 2014, reported Wells Fargo Securities, Charlotte, N.C.

Rents for new residents of U.S. apartment communities rose 4.8 percent last year, reported MPF Research, Carrollton, Texas.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency yesterday issued a final rule on Federal Home Loan Bank membership that retains a controversial Mortgage Bankers Association-opposed restriction on captive insurers. 

Steven Bradshaw, testifying on Capitol Hill yesterday on behalf of the Mortgage Bankers Association, said the National Flood Insurance Program is “unsustainable” in its current form and should be expanded to accommodate private flood insurance options. 

Cap rates for retail, office and industrial single-tenant net-lease properties declined steadily throughout 2015 as investors pursued the asset class’s stable returns, reported the Boulder Group, Northbrook, Ill.

Nearly two-thirds of overseas investors surveyed plan modest or major U.S. real estate investments this year despite moderate concerns about higher interest rates, the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate reported.

CBRE Group, Los Angeles, acquired CBRE Memphis, a commercial real estate services firm that served as the firm’s Memphis, Tenn. affiliate since 1996.

Hotels experienced steady bookings increases in late 2015, with 21 of the top 25 markets showing committed occupancy growth, reported TravelClick, New York.