Moderator

Kim_Gatley
Kim Gatley
Sr. Vice President
& Director of Research
NAI REOC Austin
(bio)

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Central Texas CCIM Symposium Recap

NAI REOC Austin was proud to support the 6th Annual Central Texas CCIM Symposium held on Jan 31st at The Sheraton Austin Capitol.  Participating on behalf of NAI REOC Austin was Josh Hubka, CCIM, who serves as this year’s president of the local CCIM chapter.  In addition, Rob Eaves and Hilton Hunt both served as volunteer committee members.  Annie Hilton, CCIM of Duff & Phelps also served on the committee.

Dr. Mark Dotzour, Chief Economist and Director of Research for the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, delivered the keynote address updating attendees on the good news and remaining challenges in the economy.  Dotzour likened the national economy to a jack-in-the box and explained that there is real energy being generated.  He pointed to factors such as climbing corporate profits, increased manufacturing orders, and growth in retail sales.  He also reported that banks now have an improved capacity to make loans, especially Texas banks which stand in better stead than the national average.   …Read Entire Post

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Banks capacity for CRE loans improving

Things are looking up in the world of commercial real estate lending.  According to National Real Estate Investor’s annual Borrower Trends Survey, more than half of lenders (56 percent) and 44 percent of borrowers are predicting that credit will be more widely available in the coming year.  …Read Entire Post

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Texas named sixth most enterprising state

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has released its “Enterprising States 2011″ report, and it enhances Texas’ reputation for being a business-friendly state.  The Lone Star State ranked sixth on the list of top ten states for low business taxes and regulations. The report said “the Lone Star State is a low-tax state that offers a low cost of living and has an enterprise-friendly climate that’s paying off with high job growth rates. Recent state initiatives include a business tax reform that raises the revenue exemption.”

 Click to read full article: Texas named sixth most enterprising state (RECON, 1-10-12)

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Latest numbers show Texas leads job growth since 2006

As usual, the latest economic news release from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has generated a flurry of analysis but no matter which way you slice it, Texas keeps coming up on top.  Check out these recent articles for more information.

 Texas leads U.S. in government job growth (Austin Business Journal, 12-29-11)

Texas leads retail sector perk up (Austin Business Journal, 12-28-11)

Texas No. 1 in U.S. for biggest 5-year job gains (Austin Business Journal, 12-27-11)

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Sears is closing stores, what retailer will be next?

Sears may be the first retailer to say it’s closing stores post holiday season, but it certainly won’t be the last as 2012 will most certainly shake up the retail world.

Sears Holdings plans to close 100 to 120 Kmart and Sears full-line stores. Final determination of the stores to be closed has not yet been made, but the chain is looking to further reduce costs by $100 to $200 million. …Read Entire Post

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Austin 4th best-performing city in U.S.

The Austin area has been ranked No. 4 on the Milken Institute’s annual Best Performing Cities Index. The Capital City fell two spots from last year when it took second place. The 2011 index takes into account jobs, wages and technology performance among 200 large metros…. …Read Entire Post

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More shoppers, more spending, but no revised holiday spending forecasts

Shoppers lured by deep discounts and early store openings sent sales over the four days starting on Thanksgiving soaring 16.7 percent over the same period a year ago to $52.4 billion, according to the National Retail Federation…Read Entire Post

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Commercial Real Estate Weathers Turbulent Times

…Demand for commercial space and net absorption has increased, although general leasing activity slowed moderately during the third quarter of 2011.  In almost all property sectors, occupancy rates are improving, concessions are declining and effective rents are rising in many markets. On the supply side, with vacancy rates relatively high, financing limited and rents below levels necessary to justify new construction, supply pipelines are well below long-term averages. The next three years should see a limited amount of new deliveries, which is a positive for further real estate recovery.

Click to read full article:  Commercial Real Estate Weathers Turbulent Times (National Real Estate Investor, 11-7-11)

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Recession Fears Eased: Economy Grows at 2.5 Percent in Third Quarter

The economy grew at an annual rate of 2.5 percent in the three months ending Sept. 30, the government reported, easing fears that the nation would fall into a second recession but still too slow a pace to cut significantly into the high unemployment rate. 

Click to read full article: Recession Fears Eased: Economy Grows at 2.5 Percent in Third Quarter (RISMedia, 2011)

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Austin listed among top 5 markets to watch in 2012

Austin snuck into the top five markets to watch next year, according to annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate report from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP  and the Urban Land Institute.  The Capital City was ranked No. 2 on the list following Washington D.C.   San Francisco, New York City and Boston rounded out the top five.

Source: PwC & ULI

…Read Entire Post

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