The fifth annual release of the joint report by Situs Real Estate Research Corporation (RERC), Deloitte and the National Association of Realtors® was released on February 4th.
According to the three organizations responsible for producing the report, “Commercial real estate activity is forecast to gradually grow this year with demand for space holding steady across all commercial sectors.” The report draws on the three organizations’ respective research and expert analysis and offers an objective outlook on commercial real estate through forecasts and commentary on the current economy, capital markets and commercial real estate property markets.
Vacancies are expected to continue to decline slightly in 2016 for all property types, except in the apartment sector, where they are forecast to increase modestly by the end of the year as more new project completions come onto the market. Continued job growth, demand exceeding supply and limited new construction (outside of multifamily) should lead to rising rents and steady investor returns, which overall will shift away from capital appreciation as price growth levels off in many markets.
Dan Whalen, Vice President for the NAI affiliate Beverly-Hanks believes the national forecasts will carry to the greater Asheville, NC market. With several large-scale residential multi-family projects due for completion in 2016, we believe the additional supply of 1,300+ units will nudge vacancy rates up in the multi-family sector.
Read Expectations & Market Realities in Real Estate 2016—Navigating through the Crosscurrents