The NAIOP Corporate government affairs staff has been busy working with chapters at the state, local, federal and provincial levels to represent the positions of the commercial real estate industry. 

The NAIOP Research Foundation has published the annual Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate, 2025 U.S. Edition, research study. The combined economic contributions of new commercial building development and the operations of existing commercial buildings in 2024 resulted in direct expenditures of $898.5 billion and the following impacts on the U.S. economy:

• Contributed $2.5 trillion to U.S. GDP.
• Generated $862.5 billion in personal earnings.
• Supported a total of 14.2 million jobs.

Other highlights from the report:

• Each $1 of construction spending generated a total value of $2.95 for the economy, reflecting the cumulative effects of the initial construction expenditures as they cycle.
• The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that private data centers represented 28.7% of office construction value in 2024, an increase from 19.7% in 2023. This is the first year the organization has separated data center construction from financial and general office construction.
• Industrial (manufacturing) and warehousing starts are down but still significantly above pre-pandemic levels. Much of the new online construction can be attributed to recent reshoring efforts in the U.S., including the CHIPS Act and Inflation Reduction Act.
• Demand for retail space in 2024 remained strong and shifted toward smaller, more creative spaces. Successful retailers offered experiential shopping with a more personalized touch or other activities, such as dining, for consumers to engage in between shopping. While larger department stores struggled, retail as a whole proved resilient.
• Some cities have experienced a larger recovery in office attendance than others. New York, for example, reached 82% utilization as of October 2024 and 91% for top-tier office buildings, indicative of a shift in demand to high-quality office properties. See data by State.

Download the Report

Originally published on November 14, 2024, by Kathryn Hamilton, CAE for NAIOP.

Shannon O’Neil grew up in a small town in Ohio, not anywhere near the border. She was enthralled by stories shared by her grandmother and a great-aunt who traveled the world, which inspired O’Neil’s desire to work internationally. Today, she is the vice president, deputy director of studies, and Nelson and David Rockefeller senior fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. She was the keynote speaker at NAIOP’s Nearshoring/Onshoring Summit held in Scottsdale, Arizona this week.

Originally published on October 25, 2023 by Brielle Scott for NAIOP.

Geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan combines an expert understanding of demography, economics, energy, politics, technology and security to help clients best prepare for an uncertain future. At NAIOP’s CRE.Converge last week in Seattle, attendees had an opportunity to hear from him at the closing keynote.

Originally published on May 19, 2023, by Kathryn Hamilton, CAE for NAIOP.

Opening with an image of a sailboat, National Forums Symposium keynote Heidi Learner said the photo captures the whipsaw tone of economic news today, with sudden shifts in unexpected directions.

Originally published on May 19, 2023, by Kathryn Hamilton for NAIOP.

Opening with an image of a sailboat, National Forums Symposium keynote Heidi Learner said the photo captures the whipsaw tone of economic news today, with sudden shifts in unexpected directions.

Originally published on March 20, 2023, by Larry Lichtenauer for NAIOP E-Newsletter.

Impending recession expected to be grinding, enduring and especially difficult for Class B and C office space

With all signs pointing to an economic recession – presumably arriving midyear or Q3 – how can the commercial real estate community best plan for this event, what lessons can be learned from similar downturns, how long will this period last and which asset classes will be particularly hard hit? Recessions cause hardships and are never a good thing, but what silver linings and opportunities will be available to savvy investors and progressive companies? Offering their insights and perspectives on this topic are Anirban Basu, chairman and CEO of Sage Policy Group and Jennifer LeFurgy, Ph.D., vice president of knowledge and research for NAIOP.    

Originally published on February 6, 2023, by NAIOP.

The four phases of commercial real estate development yield significant contributions to the U.S. economy, creating jobs and building the places we work, shop, live and play. In 2022, combined economic contributions of new commercial building development and the operations of existing commercial buildings:

Originally published on February 3, 2023, by Brielle Scott for NAIOP E-Newsletter.

Painting a picture of the current global economic climate is a complex venture, but Reva Goujon, director at Rhodium Group, leveraged her vast geopolitical expertise to do so at NAIOP’s Chapter Leadership and Legislative Retreat this week in Washington, D.C.