Industry News
The head of a major economic forecasting firm wrote a column for Bloomberg, in which he states the reasons why renting is controlling the nation's housing market this year are numerous. According to A. Gary Shilling, president of A. Gary Shilling & Co., mortgage and housing woes remain significant obstacles to prospective refinancers and buyers,… Read more >>
Commercial Real Estate Show guests recently indicated the industry is well-positioned for the coming years, particularly due to the advent of Echo Boomers to the ranks of renters. Apartment market research firm AxioMetrics' president Ronald Johnsey predicted the occupancy rate will climb to 95 percent in 2012, compared to the 93.5 percent achieved last year,… Read more >>
Housing will contribute to growth for the first time in seven years as apartment construction leads the U.S. building industry, experts' projections indicate. Economists Michelle Meyer and Celia Chen of Bank of America and Moody's Analytics, respectively, independently arrived at this conclusion. Their expectations do differ significantly, with Meyer predicting a 45 percent increase in… Read more >>
Experts at the RealShare Apartments East conference expressed differing opinions about the future of the multifamily sector in the East Coast. Panelist Steve Witten stated he expects a strong performance in 2012 due to solid fundamentals, a limited development pipeline and favorable debt and equity, according to GlobeSt.com. However, Wistar Wood noted he had concerns… Read more >>
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac processed a $24.4 billion and $20.3 billion, respectively, in multifamily debt during 2011, amounts that were 44 and 32 percent higher than during 2010. The two government-sponsored enterprises have taken on larger roles in the multifamily housing sector in recent years, and Apartment Finance Today attributes the large increases in… Read more >>
The multifamily sector of the real estate industry has performed extremely well in recent years. In the past three years, total returns have been nearly 40 percent, according to Green Street Advisors. The firm notes that 2011 in particular was an exceptional year due to higher demand, limited growth and availability of debt, and projects… Read more >>
Analysts believe this year may be the time the housing market makes a turnaround, partly based on a recent report from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) that revealed builder confidence in the single-family housing construction sector rose. This was the fifth consecutive month confidence improved and the NAHB reported confidence set a new… Read more >>
The recent "Expectations and Market Realities in Real Estate 2012" report suggests occupancy and lending should increase in several parts of the commercial property industry, while favorable investment returns and conditions attract activity compared to other, riskier investment vehicles. Created through a joint effort by the Real Estate Research Corporation, Deloitte and the National Association… Read more >>
Commercial property will continue to expand this year, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) forecasted at its Commercial Real Estate Finance/Multifamily Housing Convention & Expo 2012. The MBA projected that commercial and multifamily originations would increase to $230 billion this year and rise further to $290 billion in 2015, with MBA vice president of commercial real… Read more >>
Rental occupancy and apartment demand are expected to increase in the Colorado Springs area in the next few years, according to a report from Hendricks & Partners. The apartment sales and research firm notes that the Fort Carson is expected to host additional military personnel by 2013, adding more than 2,000 new civilian jobs to… Read more >>