Consumers prioritize food and personal care items. For a second consecutive month, total retail sales dropped; however, a pair of necessity-based categories continued to record gains. In March, health and personal care shops registered a third consecutive month of growth, with sales rising 0.3 percent. Meanwhile, grocery store purchasing increased slightly amid a decline in food at home inflation. The divergence between these two segments’ performance and overall retail spending indicates…

Supply and demand outlook for four main property types Will record apartment and industrial construction outpace demand drivers? Construction pipeline for 2024-2025 – will there be a respite?

Yahoo Finance Features Marcus & Millichap CEO Hessam Nadji What Near-Term Maturing CRE Loans Mean for Investors Why maturing CRE mortgages should not generate a systemic financial market problem. Which property types pose the greatest risk to investors and the banking system? Short-term challenges for maturing loans and how they are being addressed.

Construction starts hindered. A tight labor market, strong wage growth, and elevated costs for food, services and housing have all contributed to keeping overall inflation elevated. The Fed has responded to this by hiking interest rates. As of late March, the overnight lending rate was at 4.75 percent, the highest level since December 2007. Also, despite a retreat in…

Risk of Banking Sector Disruption Driven by Commercial Real Estate Defaults Remains Low Following the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, concerns have arisen around small banks holding high concentrations of commercial real estate debt. Outside of a few challenged segments, however, commercial assets have generally performed well. Much of the small bank CRE debt is also not set to mature this year. These factors temper risks of a banking disruption stemming from… Read More

Mild mortgage rate relief brought buyers off the sidelines. Existing single-family home sales hit a 5-month high in February, correlating with a slight retreat in borrowing costs. Mortgage rates have been volatile in the opening portion of 2023, climbing after the Federal Reserve voiced a more aggressive stance, then falling again after Silicon Valley Bank’s demise and the related banking sector turmoil. The average 30-year mortgage rate is nevertheless undercutting last year’s 7 percent peak, hanging… Read More

CRE investment strategies that face higher risk Areas of the CRE investment spectrum facing the greatest headwinds Will a “snowball” of CRE distress begin to form?

Employers continuing to hire, but at tapering pace. The economy welcomed 236,000 new positions in March, the slowest month for job creation since a net loss in December 2020. Hiring was led by the leisure and hospitality sector, along with additions in health care, the public sector, and professional and business services. These gains offset job losses in retail trade, construction and manufacturing. Overall, while last month’s hiring is well above the long-term average, it falls… Read More

Marcus & Millichap CEO Hessam Nadji featured on Fox Business Why home buyers remain on the sidelines and what will trigger their return The recent apartment rent growth downturn and what to expect for 2023 The events that will spark a revival of apartment demand, and how investors can capitalize

Yahoo Finance Features Marcus & Millichap CEO Hessam Nadji Reduced size of rate increase and outlook suggests end to tightening cycle nearing Factors impacting CRE values and trading activity Trend variations by property type: How real estate has adapted to the many challenges and headwinds of the past and what’s ahead