Forbes claims investing in REITs is a better alternative to direct investment in property. Companies should be offering their employees help with housing as a retention incentive, according to CNBC. These are among today’s must reads from around the commercial real estate industry.
- Data Proves REITs are Better than Buying Real Estate “The iron is hot when it comes to real estate investing. Over the past 5 years, both residential and commercial real estate have rewarded investors with annual returns greater than 7%. What’s more, current home ownership rates are declining and residential and commercial vacancy rates are also declining, reflecting the fact that the total pool of renters is increasing. Overall, these trends show us that investing in real estate, and more specifically, owning income-producing rental properties, continues to be a good investment strategy.” (Forbes)
- The Perk Companies Should Be Offering Employees: Help with Housing “Housing has proven elusive in many markets and often the case is affordability — whether it’s sky-high prices or a personal financial matter — difficulty scraping together a downpayment or a bad credit history affecting a mortgage or rental agreement. So, what do you do if you are an employer trying to lure employees to come and work for you? One solution is for companies to actually start helping employees with housing.” (CNBC)
- Downtown Yonkers: a Cleaner, Greener Place to Call Home “Developers are digging in on either side of the new Van der Donck Park, constructing high-rises and retrofitting old factories, adding residences to what was once strictly a business and government district, and banking on the greener look of downtown to lure people priced out of New York — or simply looking for a change of pace.” (The New York Times)
- Corporate Lobbying Helped Derail Border Tax: Senior U.S. Republican “An aggressive corporate lobbying effort to derail a Republican-backed border tax has forced lawmakers working on tax reform to seek alternatives, Kevin Brady, chairman of the tax-writing U.S. House Ways and Means Committee, said on Wednesday. The proposed border adjustment tax on U.S. companies that move jobs abroad and import products back into the U.S. market was meant to be a linchpin of a Republican tax overhaul in the House of Representatives.” (Reuters)
- Fosun Looking for $800M to Refi 28 Liberty “Fosun International is seeking a loan of up to $800 million to refinance 28 Liberty Street, sources told The Real Deal, taking the next step in its repositioning of the 2.1 million-square-foot Lower Manhattan tower it bought for $725 million in 2013. The Shanghai-based conglomerate tapped CBRE’s Tom Traynor and James Millon, both recent hires from Deutsche Bank, to secure the loan, at terms that would value the property at roughly $1.45 billion – twice what it paid to buy the building three-and-a-half years ago.” (The Real Deal)
- LaSalle Street Office Building Selling for $165 Million “A Loop office building is selling for about $165 million in a deal that shows how a rising market lifts many properties, even ones that underachieve. Boston-based investment firm Beacon Capital Partners has agreed to acquire the 20-story office building at 231 S. LaSalle St. from a venture led by New York investor Michael Silberberg, according to people with knowledge of the transaction. Beacon is paying about $165 million, or $176 per square foot, for the Art Deco tower that was built in 1924, the people said.” (Crain’s Chicago Business)
- The Titans Behind LA’s Trophy Tower Sales “The bromance between Jonathan Gray and Roy March is on full display in Los Angeles this year, as the CEOs have teamed up to sell a $2 billion-plus treasure trove of office towers. But the bond between Gray and March has a history. It was set in stone more than a decade ago, with a haircut. It was 2006, and March, the CEO of Eastdil, told Gray, the CEO of Blackstone Group, that he was scared to cut his hair.” (The Real Deal)
- Rodents Reportedly Fall from the Ceiling at Dallas Chipotle “The sky might not be falling but the alternative isn’t pretty. Rodents were spotted at a Dallas-area Chipotle Mexican Grill on Tuesday. One customer told NBC DFW her lunch was ‘ruined by rodents falling from the ceiling.’ A Chipotle statement said it was ‘an extremely isolated and rare incident.’ Diners captured cellphone video inside the restaurant that show rodents crawling around the floor and one climbing up the wall. According to the story, customers claim the rodents fell from the ceiling.” (CNBC)
- Tech Scene Stays Hot, Rent Growth Cools in San Jose “Silicon Valley is the nation’s largest tech hub, a top-performing venture capital market and one of the most prominent locations for startups. The metro continues to thrive as an attractive destination for businesses and young, educated workers, as a result of consistent employment and wage growth. However, the rental market is cooling as San Jose becomes increasingly unaffordable, even for higher-paid workers. Rents dropped 1.3 percent year-over-year through May to $2,675, more than double the national average.’ (Commercial Property Executive)
- Kohl’s CEO Says Tech Will Spare His Stores from Retail’s Shakeout “The year 2017 has generated a constant drumbeat of mass store closure announcements by major retailers hit by chronically declining sales. But Kohl’s, which earlier this year said it would reconfigure hundreds of stores to shrink them rather than close them, is bucking that trend, saying that physical locations, with a few tech tweaks, are essential as rivals wither and e-commerce rises. Kohl’s Chief Executive Kevin Mansell takes umbrage at his company being lumped in with struggling department stores like J.C. Penney, Sears and Macy’s, noting that in contrast to those rivals, only 5% of his stores are in malls.” (Fortune)