The Lede

Wall Street Journal, Mar. 8, 2016--Brown, Eliot New signs of weakness are surfacing in the commercial-property market, ending a half-decade run of improvement with steadily climbing values.

National Mortgage News, Mar. 4, 2016--Peters, Andy Commercial and multifamily mortgage delinquency rates dropped in the fourth quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Scotsman Guide, Mar. 3, 2016--Whitman, Victor Delinquency rates on commercial and multifamily mortgages held by the major investor classes generally fell or remained stable in the fourth quarter, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.

National Real Estate Investor, Mar. 9, 2016--Bell, Diana Investors should keep the office sector on their radars, as metrics from a number of research and investment firms point to a strong performance in the years ahead.

Forbes, Mar. 9, 2016--Razin, Eli Plummeting crude oil prices--which slid more than 70 percent since June 2014--has been bad news for oil industry hotspots like Houston, where the energy industry downturn affected commercial real estate, particularly the office sector.

Commercial property price indexes diverged in early 2016 as Moody's and Real Capital Analytics observed price declines while Green Street Advisors and CoStar saw slight price increases.

Real estate investment trusts ended February with relatively flat performance following some ups and downs, reported Trepp, New York. 

More than half the corporate executives surveyed favor talent availability over real estate cost as their top strategic consideration when making real estate location decisions, reported CBRE Group, Los Angeles.

Commercial valuations decreased 26 basis points in February, led by office price drops, said Ten-X, Irvine, Calif.

Homeownership: the American Dream. A vision created in the post-World War II boom, when returning military from the "Greatest Generation" began populating Levittowns and suburbs all over the country. 

Commercial and multifamily real estate activity generally improved since early January, the Federal Reserve reported yesterday in its Beige Book.

The Mortgage Bankers Association appointed Lionel Lynch as Vice President of Strategic Member Relations.

DebtX, Boston, launched a new credit-rating system for commercial real estate whole loans to enable financial institutions to make better risk and pricing decisions.