ARTICLES OF INTEREST
August 17, 2010
Commercial Real Estate Women Network to Participate in Real Estate Roundtable Fall Meeting
Commercial Real Estate Women Network announced today its upcoming participation in the fall Real Estate roundtable meeting which will include a discussion on the industry's key economic issues... Read Full Press Release
August 16, 2010
2010 CREW Network Convention and Marketplace Calls Attendees to Action
Opportunities Rising: Leading to Change Press Release
October 20-23, 2010, San Francisco, CA Downloadable Packet
July 9, 2010
IE Real Estate Insider Q&A
Joe Ascenzi
Q&A with Mark J. Wymar from CCSInteractive in Upland, the June speaker for CREW Inland Empire, speaking about social media. Read Article
April 22, 2010
Development Experts See Growth in Inland Empire
Liset Marquez, Staff Writer
ONTARIO - As the Inland Empire emerges from the recession, economic development experts believe the region will eventually become the state's leader in economic growth.
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March 16, 2010
ICSC to Lead Special Interest Group Session for Women in Retail Real Estate at RECon 2010
Faith Hope Consolo and Other Industry Leaders to Conduct Roundtables at World's Largest Retail Real Estate Conference in Las Vegas
NEW YORK CITY (March 16, 2010) - In an innovative new session to be held at the International Council of Shopping Centers Inc.'s annual RECon convention in Las Vegas, some of the industry's most senior and influential female professionals will lead a Special Interest Group of roundtables geared toward Women In Retail Real Estate. Read Article
February 28, 2010
Commercial Real Estate Women, Inland Empire
Toni Momberger, Daily Bulletin
Members of the Inland Empire branch of Commercial Real Estate Women learned over seasoned fish last week the benefits women in the corporate world find in playing golf. Last month over steak salads they got a market update that included vacancy statistics, exports, docks, environmental building trends and legalizing marijuana.
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December 28, 2009
EPA Regulation of Greenhouse Gases to Have Limited Effect on State Endangerment finding is consistent with path California has taken with AB32, other existing environmental laws
Kari Hamanaka, Cailfornia Real Estate Journal
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November 29, 2009
Commercial Realtors Face Long Recovery
Lauren McSherry, The Business Press
Momentum has been slow to return to commercial real estate in the Inland Empire, but real estate experts are predicting that some areas are expected to recover sooner than others.
They also say some sectors of the market, such as industrial, will remain more stable than sectors that were over-built, such as commercial office space.
One of the issues affecting the commercial real estate market has to do not only with financial lending institutions, but the borrowers themselves.
"The core principle of banking is lending, so the way out of where we are right now is lending," said Karen Racusin, U.S. Bank senior vice president, regional manager in Southern California. "The reality is that volumes are all down. That is an industry reality. The issue really is appetite. There is a change in what people want to borrow with."
Racusin said she wanted to stimulate a dialogue about the new reality in the commercial real estate market.
Instead of focusing on what led to the downturn, Racusin feels it is important to talk about how to function in the new economic reality.
"There is so much inventory today in every sector that some of the requests that are coming in don't make sense," she said. "And that is also a new reality."
As of the end of the third quarter, commercial real estate firm Grubb & Ellis reported almost 24 percent of the office space in Riverside and San Bernardino counties was vacant, up from 13 percent in the previous three months.
Developers who thought they were getting a bargain when they bought cheaper land in the Inland area three years ago now don't have enough tenants to provide a revenue stream to start paying off the loans they took out. Several experts believe the area could see a wave of foreclosed office buildings in the next few quarters.
Racusin was one of four real estate experts who participated in a panel discussion, Nov. 18, hosted by the Inland Empire chapter of the Commercial Real Estate Women.
"The whole purpose of putting this panel together was to get some clarity," said Ruby Simpson, president of CREW's Inland Empire chapter.
As far as recovery goes, the real estate experts seemed to be in agreement that the western portion of the Inland Empire will recover faster than its eastern territory, which is roughly east of a line from Sierra Avenue in Fontana to Perris.
The experts primarily discussed the outlook for the real estate industry and their predictions for the commercial real estate in the coming year. There was consensus that there is still a ways to go before the market will rebound.
"I don't think it's going to turn around until unemployment comes back," said John H. Renken, president and broker for The Renken Company in Claremont.
Renken said that it has been difficult to derive values for appraisals because there have been too few transactions. If sales improve next year, at least there will be a base to work with, he said.
"I think next year the hope is that some of this product will come back," Renken said. "I think we've got a long ways to go."
Racusin said she believes the commercial real estate crisis is in its sixth inning. She is seeing early signs of recovery, starting with industrial real estate. She cautioned, however, that there remains $1.5 trillion in toxic assets that has yet to come through the financial system. "I think we still have a bumpy road," she said.
Deborah Gallagher, senior vice president and director of SBA lending for Community Bank, agreed that there are signs of recovery.
"We're seeing a lot of equipment activity which was pretty non-existent at the beginning of the year," she said.
The financial climate has made lending institutions cautious. Banks that are lending, Gallagher said, have been monitoring their portfolios, re-evaluating properties almost every 90 days.
She predicted that more banks failures could come, and stabilization may finally arrive at the end of 2010.
Likewise, Erik Hernandez, senior vice president for Lee & Associates - Ontario, has seen evidence of things turning around. There will be more building sales in the fourth quarter of 2009 than in the first two quarters of the year, he said.
The experts also discussed how industrial space has fared better than other commercial real estate sectors in the downturn because less was built. A glut of office space remains a problem.
Renken said that he has observed that those who are buying industrial space plan to use it, not rent it out.
The momentum in the market is being created by owner occupiers, who are jumping into the market because of low interest rates and because conventional lending is available, he said. Lending for investors is more stringent, requiring 50 percent down, while owner occupiers are only required to put 10 percent down. Investors are holding back until there is more velocity in the market, he said.
Racusin said she feared that too many people are waiting for prices to fall, in order to get the best bargain possible. She advised that for the recovery to take hold, more real estate buyers will need to jump in.
"Somebody has to lead us out of here," she said. "If you take one thing out of here, we have to create trust, or we'll all be standing out here waiting for just the right deal."
November 19, 2009
Real Estate Still Reeling Panel Sees Bright Spot in Industry
Matt Wrye, The Sun
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October 15, 2009
The Faithful Shopper: Restaurants & Retail - A Tale of Two Cities
Faith Hope Consolo, The Retail Group
http://www.faith-consolo.com/about.htm
As seen in THE HUFFINGTON POST
Last week, I was privileged to moderate a panel on "Food as Fashion" at the Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Network's National Convention in Boston, and this Madison Avenue Maven thought you could benefit from a perspective of a different market. My panel couldn't have been in a more distracting venue: I had to travel through Simon's Shops at Copley Place -- Tiffany, Barney's, Tourneau -- to The Shops at Prudential Center -- Saks, Lord & Taylor, Gucci -- to get to the Hynes Convention Center. In this simple walkway, I was almost late for my own packed panel as I checked out the stores like a kid in a candy shop. Along the way I kept meeting lovely people from California, Illinois and Canada asking for directions, which I couldn't answer because I simply couldn't focus. I, a New Yorker, was having difficulties navigating! My shoes were pounding the pavement and thank goodness I found the convention center because the experience was extremely uplifting!
My speakers were definite headliners -- restaurateur Steve DiFillippo, owner of Davio's (a great upscale Northern Italian steakhouse) and Avila; Au Bon Pain executive chef Thomas John and Simon Property Group senior VP Cynthia Kernan. It was unanimous -- diners and shoppers are coming back, and even corporate events are filling up. Having these experts give insights drew the complete picture of our position-owner, chef, "retail-ista".
Highlight quotes:
Faith Hope Consolo: "Look into your crystal ball and give me your looking back, looking forward moment; make a wish."
Steve DiFillippo: "I wish for no snow on Saturday nights -- a restaurateur's nightmare."
Chef Thomas John: "Au Bon Pain is breaking boundaries -- we just opened last week in Bangalore [India's equivalent of Silicon Valley, and the country's third most populous city].
Cynthia Kernan: "I was looking for new venues and would welcome new restaurateurs to my centers."
Interesting tidbit and combo-platter: Davio's will open a new restaurant next year in a Simon property.
As has been seen in metro Boston, upscale dining and fast food traffic have remained strong, the panel said, though customers are definitely focusing on price. Comfort food is hot right now, a trend we see here in New York with the opening of Macbar in Soho and Ed's Chowder House on the Upper West Side. Equally important, everyone focused on how much smarter businesses are running. From negotiating great rents and spaces, to minimizing operating costs, restaurants and retailers are positioning themselves for the long haul. And expect some new and innovative offerings from mainstay restaurants.
I was most cheered by the news of a bounceback in corporate parties for year-end. Given how important holiday events are not just to the city's coffers, but even the collective mood, this is a great omen for other cities, New York in particular. Our restaurants, at all price points, are the equivalent of our living rooms for many people -- our apartments are so small, what choice do we have? More diners and more corporate events equals more money for restaurant workers, cab drivers, garages, valets and others allied to the entertainment business. After this delightful exchange, I spent some time walking around the city's best retail streets and urban centers, and the result is some great news that should also apply to New York and other great cities.
Comparing and contrasting Boston's retail with New York's also resulted in good news. Prudential Center and Simon's Copley Place were well-occupied and humming. Newbury Street, the equivalent of Madison Avenue, had some vacant stores, but also interesting newcomers to Boston's scene that could easily find a home in New York (if I have anything to say about it!). Restaurants were busy, shoppers strolled the streets with purchases, and the city was lively. It's clear to me that customers are coming out of retail hiding, just in time for holiday shopping. Nobody is expecting the free-spending days of just a few years ago, as unemployment continues to be a concern. But Boston is yet another example of the resilience of the urban shopper -- one that New York knows all too well!