Each Wednesday, The Wrap presents a compilation of recent noteworthy commercial real estate stories from a variety of publications. Below are links to five stories that caught our eyes in recent days:
Technology Behind Hugely Popular Pokémon Go Game Could Be Transformative for Buildings and CRE, By Mark Heschmeyer, CoStar
Key Excerpt:
“AR technology appears to offer the real estate industry the potential for pioneering immersive experiences on two fronts: the most obvious being its potential for marketing under construction property but also play a major role in bringing operational efficiencies to facility management.”
U.S. Office Sector Enjoys Steady Q2 Leasing Momentum Even as Rent Growth Slows, Sales Stall, By Randyl Drummer, CoStar
Key Excerpt:
“The U.S. office vacancy rate ticked down another 15 basis points to 10.6 percent in the second quarter of 2016, well below the long-term historical vacancy rate of 11.3 percent. CoStar analysts expect the office vacancy rate to continue trending lower before bottoming out at around 10.2 percent in 2018, about the same as lowest point of the last real estate cycle.”
REIT Continue to Beat S&P 500 in 2016, By Sarah Borchersen-Keto, REIT.com
Key Excerpt:
“Turning to specific REIT segments, apartment REITs were among the top performers in July, posting returns of 2.5 percent. Through the first seven months of the year, the strongest performance came from free standing retail REITs where returns totaled 40.4 percent. Data center REIT returns during that period stood at 33.2 percent, and returns for single-family home REITs gained 33 percent.”
Banks continue making corporate, commercial real estate loans tougher to get, Fed survey shows, By Greg Robb, MarketWatch
Key Excerpt:
“Loan standards to commercial and industrial firms and commercial real estate tightened for the fourth straight quarter in the three months ended in June, the Federal Reserve said Monday in its senior loan officer survey.”
Franklin Street to buy Midtown’s Pershing Park for $45.5 million, By Douglas Sams, Atlanta Business Chronicle
Key Excerpt:
“Franklin Street Properties Corp. has reached an agreement to buy Midtown’s Pershing Park Plaza building, the home of law firm Jones Day, for almost $46 million.”