There is good news for commercial real estate investors this year, investment activity is expected to rebound. According to JLL, their analysis projects global investment volumes will rise to $700B in 2017, up $50B from 2016’s levels. Large institutional allocations into commercial real estate support the prediction, with many firms focusing on real estate as they hunt for higher-yield investments. That coupled with potential regulatory changes, including the Dodd-Frank Act and its CMBS risk retention requirements, will help out the market. Read more…

After a long period of expansion due to demand outpacing supply – in Q3 2016 the sector hit its 26^th consecutive quarter of record net occupancy gains – and investors favoring the sector causing record levels of acquisition spending and low cap rates, it is inevitable that demand will plateau. 2017 may still see rising rents and supply-demand imbalance that will lead to shrinking vacancies, but the magnitude will get a bit smaller. However, e-commerce and the idea that users need to be as close to the customer as possible will continue to drive industrial real estate. Read more…

Without a strong online presence to engage customers, is the traditional brick-and-mortar retailer set for extinction? While it may seem this way with the advent of online shopping, the landscape has evolved with online retailers opening physical stores, coined clicks-to-bricks. Studies show that the strongest retailers are omnichannel, they span physical, mobile and social platforms.  Growth in rental values and drop in vacancies will continue to be concentrated in markets where employment is growing and where there is a focus on experiential retail and adaptive reuse. Read more…

Creative office, including shared offices and co-working, are the hot trend now in major markets but there is concern about shared office saturation. Shared office giants such as WeWork and MakeOffices are solving solve short-term office requirements and leading a big-box, co-working mania by absorbing astounding footprints across the country. Due to shared offices being a relatively new product class and the uncertainty regarding their long-term viability, there is a possibility for the co-working model to shift to local companies controlling smaller footprints. Read more…

As winter weather starts to blow in, it stirs the desire to plan an escape to snow-capped mountains. If a luxurious winter getaway is in on your mind, be sure to check out five new and improved classy, alpine-themed resorts that offer high-end accommodations.

Hotel Barriere Les Neiges

Nestled in Courchevel, France and characterized by elegance, this contemporary hotel features 42 luxury rooms and suites with white marble, silky fabrics and in-room fireplaces. With the ease of direct access to the slopes, a spa, pool, private cinema room, and dining onsite, this luxurious hotel will run you $1,200/night.

Suvretta House

For the most modern, 5-star accommodation – and the only ski-in, ski-out option in St. Moritz, Switzerland – this hotel is surrounded by natural park landscape and provides its guests with access to its new Tesla house car. The 105-year-old hotel offers traditional rituals like “five o’clock tea” with a suggested dress code for gentlemen in the evenings. Boasting 181 rooms and suites (only half will be renovated this season) starting at $290/night.

The Blake

This 80-room hotel in Taos, New Mexico is part of a long-awaited $300 million base-area revitalization. The hotel’s influences are reminiscent of the tapestry of Taos – elemental, cultural, and sustainable. Opening in February, with lifts adjacent to the alpine guesthouse, well-appointed rooms start at $249/night.

HUUS Hotel

If you’re looking for an authentic, comfortable, Alpine-style chalet, look no further than this new 131-room hotel located in Gstaad, Switzerland. Nestled in the Bernese Alps and just a mere two miles from the Schonried and Gstaad lifts which boast the best ski terrain in the world. Rooms start at a modest $152/night, which leaves you feeling fresh to explore the more than 150 miles of slopes and trails right from the hotel.

Hotel Talisa

Coming off a rebranding – previously the Vail Cascade Resort – this relaxing yet refined 285-room, alpine-inspired hotel offers unparalleled mountain experiences with on-site access to the Cascade chairlift. Located at the base of Vail Mountain, there are plenty of soaring evergreens and aspen to explore. Accommodations coming soon.

Sources:

BISNOW, Winter is Coming: Here are 5 Cool New and Improved Ski Resorts from around the World

Many Americans are speculating about what Donald Trump’s presidential win will mean for global economies during his term in office and over the long term. If President-elect Trump’s policy statements that he promised on the campaign trail come to fruition, it will signify a coming shift in global policies surrounding free trade, immigration and international finance.

While the win dealt an initial shocking blow to global financial markets, with stock futures plunging the night of the election, the futures market improved the morning after Trump’s acceptance speech. There was surprise but the surprise was short-lived, and the hope is that trend continues.

President-elect Donald J Trump – who will become the 45^th president of the United States of America – has stated that his immediate priorities include a rewrite of the tax code, which will have a major impact on the commercial real estate industry. Reactions from Trump’s proposed legislation has commercial real estate professionals split over the positive and negative consequences.

Pros

• If Trump can deliver what he promises and create 25 million jobs and reduce the corporate tax rate, which is 38.9% (the highest in the world among industrial nations), it could bode well for all industries. The change to the corporate business tax will impact startup companies by creating additional opportunities, and hopefully larger companies reinvesting additional capital into business.

• Trump’s stance on Dodd-Frank regulations stated on his transition website that “banks and lenders provide funding to small businesses and mortgage borrowers to help fund the American Dream,” and that Dodd-Frank regulations are an example of what not to do, in that federal policy should encourage free enterprise, not stifle it.

• Trump will roll back government regulations built up under President Obama that impose stricter guidelines on how businesses access credit.

Cons

• Beacon Economics’ forecast analyzed how Trump’s policies could be enough to push the country into a recession. While tax cuts could create a good short-term impact and growth, it will increase the federal deficit and widen the trade deficit, the report forecasts.

• Strict immigration policies and deportation of undocumented residents could hinder companies from attracting additional talent from abroad.

• Trump’s trade policy and how the President-elect campaigned on using tariffs to increase the cost of goods from China and other countries imported into the U.S. would impact the supply chain and may cause other countries to retaliate and put tariffs on American goods.

Summary

While political uncertainty is not anybody’s friend, real estate or not, the expectation is that advisers to the White House will rein in rhetoric from the race and propose more reasonable positions. The pace and intensity of commercial real estate may slow as owners and investors wait to see what the new administration and still-Republican-controlled Congress proposes. However, the likelihood is that Trump’s policies will only become clear after his first 100 days in office.

Sources:

BISNOW, Blackstone’s Schwarzman Predicts Trump Will Be Good for Business

BISNOW, Trump to be Named 45^th President of the US, Now What?

NAIOP Source, Trump Wins and Republicans Hold the House and Senate – What’s Next?

BISNOW, 4 Things to Consider Regarding Trump’s Plans for Dodd-Frank

BISNOW, President-Elect Trump’s Potential Impact on the West Coast