What's new? Find out in this month's RCA-KC "Commercial Matters"

February 2011

Commercial REALTORS® Honored for 2010 Accomplishments

The REALTORS® Commercial Alliance of the Kansas City Regional Association of REALTORS® (RCA-KC) held its 2011 Commercial Awards reception on February 17 at Plaza III. Each year, this event recognizes the accomplishments of our city's finest commercial REALTORS® during the prior year. Walt Clements, 2009 RCA-KC President, served as the Master of Ceremonies at the event.

"The REALTORS® Commercial Alliance of Kansas City is once again proud to recognize the leaders in the Kansas City commercial real estate brokerage industry for their accomplishments in 2010," Clements said.

2010 Allen J. Block REALTOR® of the Year Dan Sight, CCIM, Reece Commercial (right), is shown here with 2009 recipient Ken Block. The award is named in honor of Ken's father.

Top honors went to Dan Sight, CCIM, Reece Commercial, who was recognized with the 2010 Allen J. Block REALTOR® of the Year Award. This award was renamed in 2009 in honor of industry icon Alan Block.

"Alan was a great guy and he was a great REALTOR® who gave back to the industry," said Dan, who is currently serving as Chair of the NAR Commercial Committee. "Those are things I've always tried to do as well. I think you need to give back to the industry where you make your money, not just for yourself but for others."

Three additional "Of the Year" awards went to:

* Sharon Gartin, Kessinger/Hunter & Co., who was named the 2010 Roger L. Cohen REALTOR® Salesperson of the Year.

* Cameron Duff, Cassidy Turley, who was named the 2010 REALTOR® Rookie of the year.

* Zimmer Realty Services, who received the 2010 Home Run Award for the National Nuclear Security Administration at Centerpoint.

Top 3 Industry Volume Awards were awarded in the following areas:

·         OFFICE - Greg Swetnam, Bob Fagan, and Brent Roberts
·         INDUSTRIAL - Michael Block, Gene Elsas, and Erik Murray
·         INVESTMENT (TIED) - Aaron Mesmer, Brian Beggs, and Grant Reves
·         RETAIL - Steve Block, Kim Bartalos, and Mike Sweeney

The REALTORS® Commercial Alliance of the Kansas City Regional Association of REALTORS® thanks the sponsors of the Commercial Awards reception: Co-Star Group and Fry-Wagner Moving & Storage.

For photos of the evening's events, go here.

NAR's Commercial Legislative Agenda for 2011

Dan Sight, 2011 NAR Commercial Committee Chair, shares NAR's outlook on 2011 and what NAR is doing for commercial real estate practitioners on legislative issues.

Watch the video >>

View the recently updated Commercial Real Estate Advocacy Timeline >>

Video: Commercial Sector to Improve in 2011

Hear what's ahead for the commercial market and more from the findings of NAR's Quarterly Commercial Real Estate Market Survey, in this 4-minute video from NAR Research.

More >>

REITs Seek to Lure U.S. Pension-Fund Money from Private Equity

Source: Bloomberg.com, February 7, 2011

U.S. real estate investment trusts are seeking a bigger piece of the more than $500 billion of property investments from pensions, aiming to attract money from the private-equity funds traditionally favored by managers.

The National Association of REITs found that a portfolio 30 percent invested in commercial property shares delivered a higher return relative to one more heavily tilted toward private-equity funds, based on a study to be published today on the group's website. Pension funds typically put less than 10 percent of their real estate allocations into publicly traded REITs to protect against stock-market volatility.

The Washington-based real estate association, which represents about 200 companies, says that what it calls "the REIT third" can help state and corporate pensions narrow a funding shortfall that totals almost $1.5 trillion, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. A bigger REIT allocation, and a smaller one in private equity, would offer better diversification and more consistent returns, said Brad Case, NAREIT's vice president for research.

Read the full story from Bloomberg News >>

Commercial Lending Bounces Back in 2010

Source: CoStar Group, February 9, 2011

Powered by improving conditions in the real estate and capital markets, CRE loan originations rose by 36% in 2010 over the previous year, according to preliminary data released at this month's Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) real estate finance convention in San Diego. In a separate report, the MBA also found that loan maturities continue to roll at a manageable level, with just 11% of the $1.4 trillion in outstanding commercial debt expected to mature this year, shrinking to 9% in 2012.

"All the fundamentals are ripe for a very positive, solid comeback, especially in the multifamily sector," Faron Thompson, who attended the conference as the newest addition to Jones Lang LaSalle's real estate investment finance team, tells CoStar.

Read the full story from CoStar Group >>

Fed Says Commercial Market Less Risky

The risks in commercial real estate loans and securities have "been reduced" and are not expected to threaten the overall health of the financial system, the U.S. Federal Reserve says.

"It appears that worst-case scenarios are becoming increasingly unlikely," Patrick M. Parkinson, director of the central bank's division of banking supervision and regulation, testified at a hearing of the Congressional Oversight Panel.

Read the full article from REALTOR® Magazine Online >>

Economist: Stronger Equity but Uneven Recovery in 2011

Sam Chandan, PhD, global chief economist of Real Capital Analytics, provides a 2011 forecast for the commercial real estate industry in the upcoming edition of Commercial Connections. We preview the issue with his perspective on the credit markets.