Welcome to CREtrends.com — a blog about commercial real estate

Developed and maintained by attorneys at Leonard, Street and Deinard, this site will address a wide variety of topics focused on commercial real estate. Collectively, we offer decades of industry experience and a national perspective that extends from our Midwestern base. Our goal is to help individuals and businesses better understand the issues driving today’s commercial real estate trends. Our Bloggers →

Latest Commercial Real Estate Blog Posts
Bidding on a home

Should Homeowners in States with Cumbersome Foreclosure Processes Pay Higher Interest Rates?

Sep 4

Affordable Housing, Banking/Finance, Land Use, Residential Development The Wall Street Journal is reporting on an idea floated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency that would make the rates paid by borrowers in states with long foreclosure processes higher than the rates paid by borrowers in states with shorter foreclosure processes.  At this point the Agency, which regulates mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has said only that it intends to seek public comment on the idea.  No details have been provided and no... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

gold-dollar-sign

Batman’s Wayne Manor Valued at $32.1 Million

Jul 20

Banking/Finance, Commercial Development, Land Use, Mixed-use Development, Residential Development, Uncategorized A recent web posting gives the appraised value of Wayne Manor, the fictitious home of Bruce Wayne, Batman's alter ego, as $32.1 million.  The posting cites an appraisal by Movoto.com as the source for that valuation, and the Movoto site does identify comparable nearby properties.  The Movoto site also contains a listing for the property that contains demographic information as well as information on the local school district.  The appraisal values the... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

gold-dollar-sign

New Homes–Would You Like to Supersize That?

Apr 24

Banking/Finance, Commercial Development, Mixed-use Development, Residential Development, Uncategorized In an earlier post, we noted a recent trend toward smaller apartments and discussed whether the trend would last beyond the end of the housing recession.  A recent New York Times article suggests that the trend is dead, at least at the highest end of the residential market.  That article discusses a strong trend in the Manhattan and South Florida markets toward huge apartments containing more than 3,000 square feet, which the article refers to as... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

tokyo streets

Convenient Public Transportation Helps Senior Housing

Apr 13

Affordable Housing, Banking/Finance, Land Use, Mixed-use Development, Residential Development, Transportation The senior housing boom finally seems to be taking hold in the U.S.  One trend that we have noted is that affordable senior housing along transportation corridors is in great demand, with new units filling up months before construction is complete.  In our car-centric culture, one factor that moves people to seek out senior housing is the loss of the ability to drive--whether caused by physical, mental, or financial disabilities.  The physical and... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

office tower

Financial Expert Predicts European Debt Crisis Will Have Little Impact on US Commercial RE Market

Feb 15

Banking/Finance, Commercial Development, Land Use, Retail, Uncategorized Jacques Gordon, global investment strategist for LaSalle Investment Management, predicts in a Wall Street Journal blog post today that the European debt crisis that is currently playing out will have only a small impact on US commercial real estate markets.  Mr. Gordon does indicate that European banks are downsizing, which may have a modest impact on East Coast office markets.  On the other hand, the decline in the euro relative to the dollar makes... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

growth-chart

REIT Values Off to a Blazing Start for 2012

Jan 30

Banking/Finance, Commercial Development, Health Care, Hospitality, Mixed-use Development, Retail, Uncategorized If REIT values are any indication, 2012 should be a great year for commercial real estate.  Shares of the iShares Dow Jones US Real Estate ETF (NYSE:IYR) are up from an October 4, 2011 low of $46.70 to a high of $60.78 at the closing of the markets last week as reported by InTheMoneyStocks.com.  That ETF is designed to track the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index, which is a broad measure of United States real estate equity performance.  The current,... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

Man Signing Paper

Market Watch: 5-Year Commercial Real Estate Loans Maturing in 2012

Jan 30

Banking/Finance, Commercial Development, Retail Commercial real estate loans originated in 2007, near the height of the real estate bubble, are maturing this year.  According to a recent New York Times article, $70 billion dollars worth of commercial real estate mortgages are maturing this year in New York City alone.  The article explains that refinancing these loans will not be automatic and banks will probably require additional capital to reduce overall debt on the property.  For properties that... Read more →

Jim Wilson

Looking up

The Most Influential Real Estate Leaders of 2011

Jan 5

Affordable Housing, Banking/Finance, Brownfields, Commercial Development, Health Care, Hospitality, Land Use, Mixed-use Development, Public Development Projects, Residential Development, Retail, Transportation, Uncategorized Inman News has posted its “Inman 100” report for 2011, listing the 100 most influential real estate leaders for the past year.  Inman’s report explains the criteria considered in the review and selection process.  The unranked real estate leaders of 2011 are listed alphabetically under the following categories: Brokerages, Franchisors, Brokerage Organizations; Economists, Academics and Consultants; Government; Industry trade groups, MLSs; Media,... Read more →

Jim Wilson

sold

Experts Divided on 2012 Homeownership Market

Jan 3

Affordable Housing, Banking/Finance, Commercial Development, Land Use, Residential Development Today's installment of MSN Money includes a good summary of the expert's predictions for the U.S. homeownership market for 2012.  The article surveys a number of prominent commentators on the homeownership market.  The predictions range from continued declines in the homeownership market to a continuation of the modest improvement trend that has prevailed for most of 2011.  The article includes a link to the Bloomberg site that contains a state by... Read more →

Shaun McElhatton

wind turbine

The Community Wind Act – A Financial Boost for Smaller-Scale Wind Farms

Nov 17

Banking/Finance New legislation was recently introduced in the U.S. Senate that would extend tax incentives for community wind projects.  The Community Wind Act, introduced by U.S. Senators Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.), would extend existing investment tax credits to small wind farms with total capacities of up to 20 megawatts for the next five years, with no restrictions on the size of any one turbine.  Currently, only wind turbines with capacities of... Read more →

Erica Delain

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