Commercial Real Estate Frontline

What’s a Reverse Run on the Bank?

Late last year, my friend Chris called me to ask whether he should withdraw all of his deposits from his local bank. Chris was afraid that his bank might fail and he'd lose his savings. "This isn't 1929," I said. "Your deposits are insured and the government's taking action to shore up our lending institutions to protect your deposits and to keep our banks solvent."

When New England Based Investors See the Bottom

When the market changes, not everyone agrees with what's happening. If change is inevitable and everybody resists it, how do we know when the market will bottom? In the last post, you read about what 1,157 New England based commercial real estate owners and investors thought of the market. Today, you'll read about where they think it's going.

How New England Based Investors See the Market

Change is inevitable and everybody resists it. But what happens when the market changes and not everyone agrees with what's happening? We wanted to find out. So we ran a survey of over 1,157 New England based commercial real estate owners and investors to collect their thoughts on the commercial real estate market.

Office Vacancy in 128 North to Increase

Vacancy rates for office space in 128 north are increasing. According to CoStar research, vacancy rates dipped in 2006-2007 into the 13% range. They're now forecasting vacancy rates up to 16% as more space comes on the market with pending job layoffs. The vacancy rate has not increased more drastically because tenants have not started giving up space to their landlords as they hold out to see when the recession will end and to see whether they'll need space to rehire staff.

The ‘Must Know Method’ For Valuing Commercial Real Estate Today

The battlefield is quiet. Buyers have retreated and sellers have dug in. There's chatter in the trenches. "They'll come to us when they're ready," the sellers banter. "They can't hold out forever. Eventually they'll need a property and will come knocking on our doors for what we've got." They feel proud of what they own, but inside they're nervous because they know they can't hold on forever. The supplies are bound to run out.

Capitulation in Boston Commercial Real Estate?

"You've finally capitulated, haven't you?" joked my business partner. He and I laugh at the fact that he's a bear and I'm a bull. It works for us. And when either of us become too negative or positive on the market, we weigh the pros and cons. "Yep." I said. "Despite the fact that you know that I'm a bull and that I've been writing and advising of this correction for some time now, I really feel that I've experienced the shift today. There's no going back now."A lot of equity's going to be lost.

Why Green’s the Best Possible Investment in Commercial Real Estate Today

Green, Green, Green. It seemed to be all the rage last year as oil prices spiked to $140/barrel and people were trading in their SUV's for economy class hybrids. Something else happened. Fortune 500 companies and the U.S. Government felt the effect and instituted policies that they, too, should be green, work to stem global warming, and make changes to their business practices that were environmentally sound.

Are You Playing Not to Lose or Playing to Win?

Play not to lose? Who would do that? More people than you may realize. How many times have you heard the excuse, "Our marriage is terrible. I'm not happy. But we've been married for 25 years, so why get a divorce? Only if it could be like it was when we first met." Or, "Sure, when I bought this building it was going to be worth 50% more than what I paid, but since I lost those tenants and I'm losing a lot of money every month. Not a big deal, the market will turn around and I'll get back to where I was, eventually."

Self-Directed IRA Investing: Make your Retirement Account work for You!

Are your retirement dollars gathering dust in your IRA account instead of providing you with greater opportunities? Last year, after hearing a short Pensco presentation about Self-directed IRA Investing in our office I knew I had to find out more. Sadly, at that time there were not any upcoming events in Boston. I [...]

Why Medical Office is Boston’s Best Bet

The Medical Device Industry, the new face of Boston’s Biotechnology industry, continues to make progress in an otherwise bleak economy. What makes medical device development so attractive is the short time required for research, development and FDA approval.  The medical device pipeline totals 5-6 years as opposed to the longer development pipeline for drugs [...]