Commercial Real Estate Finance

Archive for February, 2012

Top 10 Best Diversified REITs for 2012:

• PS Business Parks (PSB)
• One Liberty Properties, Inc. (OLP)
• Vornado Realty Trust (VNO)
• Liberty Property Trust (LRY)
• Gladstone Commercial Corp. (GOOD)
• Washington REIT (WRE)
• Winthrop Realty Trust (FUR)
• Colonial Properties Trust (CLP)
• Whitestone REIT (WSR)
• Cousins Properties, Inc. (CUZ) Read the rest of this entry »

What do kids do for fun today? Certainly not “hang out at the local mall,” based on my recent experience at the Granite Run Mall in suburban Philadelphia. The place was a ghost town.

The declining popularity of shopping malls is not unreasonable. First of all, who wants to park in a lot, walk a few hundred yards to the front door, then walk past 20 stores just to get to The Children’s Place?  Personally, I prefer the efficiency and direct storefront access of a Target (TGT). Read the rest of this entry »

A couple months ago, I emailed a fellow CRE blogger who is based in the Midwest. It was a simple bit of correspondence, intended to say how much I enjoyed his site and to exchange links. “Oh yeah,” he said. “I know the Llenrock Blog–I read it all the time!”

I shouldn’t have been surprised. Despite living 1,000 miles apart, in very different markets, we were both familiar with each other’s social media efforts and respective companies. As in other industries, social networks have served to consolidate us, to create relationships between professionals and clients in a way that couldn’t have happened just a decade ago. Yet many CRE firms have been slow to embrace social media as a networking/PR tool, as reported in a recent CoStar Group article.   Read the rest of this entry »

As IT companies grow and multiply, there is an increasing demand for data centers to accommodate their often-sprawling servers. Investors like Digital Realty Trust (DLR) are reaping the rewards.

Read the rest of this entry »

[Today we're excited to feature a guest post about CRE investment in Philadelphia. Many thanks to freelance blogger Emma Crawford for her contribution.]

With the new year in full swing, parts of Philadelphia are proving popular hubs for commercial investment. Specifically, Center City and University City are thriving on recent investments, with a number of proposed or in-process commercial projects in the area, including an updated movie theater, retail centers, and multifamily projects.

Despite past hurdles, Center City has attracted a handful of developers looking to capitalize on its prime location. One major tenant in all of the Center City action has been somewhat surprising. Publishing giant the Philadelphia Media Network, owner of the Inquirer and Daily News, is preparing to fill  a new space right near the Gallery at Market East.

Read the rest of this entry »

Week in Review for February 18 – 24:

- In a bid to curb revenue decline, Sears Holdings (SHLD), operator of Sears and Kmart stores, plans to sell off a number of its locations. This move is expected to generate between $400 and $500 million. General Growth Properties (GGP) has agreed to buy 11 of these stores.

- Fitch raises concerns about overly high CMBS servicer fees for distressed properties.  As 5-year CMBS from 2007 mature this year, Fitch says, a greater need for special servicing will create troubling penalties for bondholders.

- A study of 160 REITs suggests a correlation between a diverse board of directions and successful performance. Reportedly, REITs with female board members enjoyed higher returns than REITs with less gender balance.

- Canadian retail REIT RioCan (REI.UN) expects half of its acquisitions this year to take place in the U.S. It is currently looking at properties in Florida, Texas, and the Northwestern U.S.

- W.P. Carey & Co., LLC (WPC) plans to acquire Corporate Property Associates 15 (CPA: 15) for $2.6 billion and convert to a REIT structure. It will still be traded in the NYSE. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s easy to lose sight of actual news stories in the middle of primary season.  While being bombarded with endless reports of only the most ridiculous, out-of-context comments from candidates and their attack dogs, its hard to keep your eye on the ball.  After Linsanity (no, I’m not embarrassed to jump on a bandwagon), the most important actual news story is the real, albeit sluggish, improvement in the economy.

Things have definitely improved a bit since the most recent European debt panic in the fall of 2011.  Employment numbers have improved and the president’s approval rating has gone up. Read the rest of this entry »

Here are the 10 largest retailers worldwide. Each company’s earnings are in millions, in USD.

10. Aldi Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG ($67,112)

9. Walgreen Co. ($67,420)

8. The Home Depot. Inc. ($67,997)

7. Costco Wholesale Corporation ($77,946)

6. Schwarz Unternehmens Treuhand KG ($79,119) Read the rest of this entry »

In today’s often-desperate economic climate, incidents of corruption often appear to be the norm. This reality, coupled with the multitude of perceptions investors hold toward value, often lands the market in a very narrow gray area between greed and risk.

Valuing an asset or portfolio for an owner can be quite different  from underwriting an asset or portfolio for a lender. Everyone has his own conception of value, limited timeline and risk threshold.    Read the rest of this entry »

In recent years, data centers have emerged as an important part of the commercial real estate world. Like electric, gas, and water companies, firms that deal in information technology have become major contributors to the nation’s infrastructure, creating employment, massive energy bills, and of course, a major demand for property.

As the New York Times reports, the latest and perhaps largest data center in New York City is set to open in the New York Telephone Company building adjacent to the Brooklyn bridge (image above). This drab but quite sizable tower, which has held condos in the past, is being acquired by the Sabey Corporation with a minority partner. With around a million square feet, the tower has all the attributes of a successful data center, the most important of which is space–for miles of wires and fiber optics, servers, air-conditioning, and other necessities.  Read the rest of this entry »