Originally published on October 12, 2022, by Matt Baron for NAIOP.

Midway into a panel discussion at CRE.Converge, a quip about the Federal Reserve behaving like a novice teenaged driver – “way too much gas, way too much brake, way too much gas” – drew laughter from many attending the jampacked session. But palpable nervousness tinged those chuckles at the metaphor by moderator Bart Johnson, president, and CRE market head, of Wintrust Bank.

Questions over the duration and extent of rising interest rates have slowed overall market activity. And no one on the panel predicted relief from the ongoing suspense any time soon.

In fact, the first perspective offered by Peter Schultz, a 39-year industry veteran who is executive vice president – of East region, First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc., was that “rates are going to rise, there’s going to be more pressure for sure. I don’t think that’s going to change any time soon.”

Read More

Inflation is expected to remain around 8% for August according to Bloomberg. While this may be slightly lower than the 8.5% consumer price index recorded in July, the continued rise in inflation from a year ago increases the cost of providing and maintaining government programs and services at the local level. The National League of Cities has reported that cities are using federal pandemic relief funds to address the impact of inflation.

Read More

originally published by GARY TASMAN for NAIOP National with permission to repost. 

Part one of this series began with a discussion on inflation and interest rates, and how we anticipate these factors will influence leasing and development in our market. As we continue the new year with the expectation of slowing economic growth and continued high inflation, we want to take a closer look at how the current economy will influence our working habits — and how commercial property trends will change as a result.

Read the Full Article!