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2011 is 2010?
Last year we saw some gains in a few areas of the market for Commercial Real Estate. Losses softened and there were in some sectors gains. What we did not see however was the Tsunami that everyone had predicted as banks shuffled bad loans to off their balance sheet so they could somewhat maintain their health. What was supposed to be a windfall for some ended up to be a puff of smoke; however we struggled through 2010 most of us ending with a pretty decent 4th quarter.
Having talked to many people in the industry 2011 should be what 2010 was supposed to be and evidence has already begun to show. FDIC is beginning to inspect properties for disposition and some of the inventory is being put into circulation from the banks, that last year held on to bad assets for the purposes of not losing any further capital. If you have not already done so you may want to register with RIISnet who is beginning to see an increase in supply. Also, Lenders in all sizes and shapes have begun to lighten up lending standards. They are going into markets and programs that last year seemed to be only wishful thinking. Case in point, I heard at a conference the other day, a lender was doing spec housing lending to builders.
The other item seems to be the capital finally coming off of the sidelines to acquire properties. For great news on the CRE market check out www.fidelitycre.com and for distressed movement the CREDAA association is growing by leaps and bounds. Momentum is building right now and by the end of 2011 it should be a great time to be in Commercial Real Estate. By first quarter of 2012, based on news on the street, we hope to have the banner year 2010 was trying to live up too.
Maybe the Fed and Banks have listened to us or maybe we learned how they played the game. Either way hold on to your seat belts it is going to be a fun and furious ride.
You can reach Scott Miller at scott.r.miller@fnf.com. Scott is a VP of National Accounts at Fidelity National Title's Major Accounts Division. He is also a founder and current Executive Director of CREDAA, the Commercial Real Estate Distressed Assets Association, and is an Executive Director of CRE 3.0, the exciting new portal for doing business in Real Estate.
