Articles About Development

Capital is flowing out of the Middle East and being invested in real estate across the globe, according to Nicholas Maclean, Managing Director, CB Richard Ellis, Middle East. “The outflow of capital from the Middle East to be invested into real estate properties worldwide has been higher than the influx of global capital into real […]

Washington, D.C. office leasing is on the upswing for the first time in a year.  Not surprisingly for the District, the rise in leasing activity is driven primarily by expanding federal agencies. A study by CB Richard Ellis of fourth quarter leasing activity showed that the private sector is again leasing space they had subleased […]

Apartment vacancies in the United States hit a 30-year high during the fourth quarter of 2009 as many would-be renters moved in with family or roommates to save money.  According to Reis, Inc., a New York research firm that tracks vacancies and rents in 79 markets across the country, the apartment vacancy rate was eight […]

Foreign banks, American private equity firms and a leading Chinese sovereign wealth fund have been investing in commercial real estate in the United States in the hope that interest rates stay low. This increasing interest from investors could be a sign that the market is experiencing some stabilization.  According to Bob Steers, co-chairman of Cohen […]

By 2015, green buildings could constitute approximately half of all commercial space, according to a study by Good Energies, Inc., a New York venture capital firm.  Although sustainable initiatives were perceived as a niche market just 10 years ago, developers now realize that going green in new and renovation projects is not as expensive as […]

Manufacturing is gradually on the upswing, according to the December ISM Manufacturing Index, which rose to 55.9 from November’s 53.6 reading.  A gain to just 54.3 was expected, so the news is encouraging.  In terms of inflation, prices paid climbed to 61.5; an increase to 57.2 was forecast.  This is great news for a sector […]

Commercial real estate will begin its long-awaited recovery in late 2011 or 2012, according to the fourth-quarter Korpacz Real Estate Investor Survey, which questioned more than 100 real estate investors, including REITs, pension funds, private equity firms and insurance and mortgage companies.  Confirmation is provided by a PricewaterhouseCoopers survey, which notes that Washington policymakers are […]

I was recently asked to comment on CB Richard Ellis’ recent “EIG State Incentives Ranking Report”  as an Certified Economic Developer who has been practicing in Illinois for nearly 30 years. Click on the link and take a look at the map and state rankings list that’s generated.  Illinois, Indiana and Iowa are marked “competitive.” […]

The Chicago Spire may restart construction, thanks to a group of union pension funds that want to put their members back to work and are in discussions to lend Irish developer Shelbourne Development Group $170 million to complete what would become the nation’s tallest building. The Spire’s construction came to a halt when the global […]

President Barack Obama is well aware that private sector investment creates the majority of sustainable jobs, even though it goes against human nature to invest during hard economic times.  Federal stimulus money has saved/created between 600,000 and 1,500,000 jobs, according to the Congressional Budget Office – a faction of the 7,500,000 million jobs lost.  Lest […]