As this is the first Four on Friday of 2014, we thought it the perfect time to pick the brains of four of our attorneys to see what they believe the coming year has in store for commercial real estate. The prognostications cover a range of topics, from REIT performance to the retail and industrial sectors. Many thanks to the four below for gazing into their crystal balls.
Buzz Wood (retired partner, owner): “A noteworthy part of commercial real estate will always be REITs (real estate investment trusts), and I think interested parties should keep an eye on them this year, as I don’t believe they will see as much of a return during this fiscal year as they had in previous ones.”
Jeremy Cohen (partner): “I believe we’ll see a continuation of new retail projects with regards to ‘ground-up development,’ coupled with increases in redevelopment and relocation transactions. We’ve reached a point where all current vacant retail space has been reabsorbed, and when you run out of product with this regard, there’s only so many directions it can go.”
Laura Kurlander (senior counsel): “Retail growth will continue to improve during the year with the focus on shopping centers with unique amenities to enhance the shopping experience.”
Will Lovell (associate): “With the economy improving and after several years where other sectors have been the belle of the ball at times, I'm predicting the hottest real estate property type for 2014 will be industrial — in particular, the warehousing subsector. This growth will be needed to accommodate increasing consumer demand, the rise of e-commerce and the trend for companies to shorten their supply chain.”
