Perspectives

Major real estate companies are increasingly restricting access to their proprietary databases. Data ownership now outweighs transaction volume or brand recognition as the primary source of competitive advantage. James Huang, Managing Director of Commercial Real Estate at RESAAS Services Inc., says the shift is dividing the industry between firms with extensive private data assets and ...

The commercial real estate market is splitting into two distinct segments: routine, commoditized transactions and specialized opportunities that demand deep regulatory knowledge. The split is creating an advantage for brokers willing to take on deals that most agents avoid due to regulatory complexity. Jason Horowitz, Broker of Record at Triforce Commercial Real Estate, notes that ...

Rising interest rates and elevated property prices have disrupted the economics of cash-flow rental investing. Many small investors have left Oregon’s secondary markets or shifted from short-term income strategies to long-term equity plays. During the pandemic, small multifamily investors drove much of the activity in places like Salem-Keizer, Oregon. But that investment approach no longer ...

Large loft-style condos in downtown San Francisco are experiencing extreme volatility, with sales activity closely tied to buyer confidence rather than underlying property fundamentals. This volatility has created a boom-bust cycle unique to lofts, setting loft units apart from other housing types in the city. According to Eddie O’Sullivan, Founder and Team Leader at Elevation ...

In Monterey County, California, the housing affordability crisis is driven less by mortgage rates than by stagnant wages and soaring home prices. Bryan Hermanson, broker and owner of California Mortgage & Realty, says that most workers in the region’s main industries earn between $40,000 and $50,000 a year, far below what is needed to qualify ...

Office tenants are increasingly choosing mixed-use locations over traditional office buildings, driven by employee expectations for amenities and convenience. Companies now consider access to dining, retail, and services within walking distance a key factor in attracting and retaining talent. “People like to work and live and have everything in one,” says Erica Nguyen, Senior Commercial ...

Younger buyers are delaying homeownership longer than prior generations, creating ripple effects that threaten market stability in growing mid-size cities. In Conway, Arkansas, one of the state’s fastest-growing cities, first-time buyers once made up nearly half of all home sales. Over the past 18 months, that share has dropped sharply, according to Richard Henley, broker ...

A new project in Houston’s Acres Homes neighborhood shows how private builders and nonprofits can deliver affordable housing without government subsidies. Kevan Shelton, co-founder and CEO of Park Street Homes, led the effort in partnership with the Houston Area Urban League, delivering 23 affordable homes and a community center through a deal structure that requires ...

Probate and trust sales in the San Francisco Bay Area are producing sharply different results depending on whether agents use specialized procedures or treat them as standard residential transactions. Eddie O’Sullivan, Founder and Team Leader at Elevation Real Estate, says agents without probate expertise often make procedural errors that raise legal costs, delay closings, and ...

Nashville’s current buyer-friendly conditions are tied directly to a temporary inventory surplus. Nashville’s four-month housing inventory, combined with a slowdown in new construction and a steady influx of 70 to 80 new residents per day, has created a brief window of opportunity for buyers. Debra Beagle, CEO and managing broker of The Ashton Real Estate ...

Banks re-entered the construction lending market in 2025 with compressed spreads and competitive terms. Still, developers report that a shortage of available equity, not debt, remains the main obstacle to new construction starts. Despite easier access to financing, capital remains tied up in existing projects that have not yet been sold or refinanced, preventing investors ...

Intensifying rental competition in San Francisco directly preceded the surge in the condo market in January 2026. High-income renters, pushed out by bidding wars and escalating rents, moved quickly into the buyer pool, according to Tim Gullicksen, Team Lead at Gullicksen Group, Corcoran Icon Properties. The connection between the two markets confirms that San Francisco’s ...

Stress in commercial real estate lending is not distributed evenly across the banking sector. Institutions with assets between $2 billion and $50 billion are generating a disproportionate share of distressed asset liquidation mandates in the Midwest and Southeast, according to Edward Durnil, President and CEO of Tranzon Asset Advisors. The pattern suggests that a lender’s ...

Kirk Hudson, Broker at Baird & Warner, reports a significant increase in LGBTQ+ individuals relocating to Chicago from other states, citing safety, representation, and legal protections as the primary reasons. Unlike previous years, most new arrivals are choosing to rent before considering homeownership, a pattern Hudson attributes to the uncertainty of moving for safety rather ...

Property tax hikes and landlord business practices are pushing qualified renters out of Chicago neighborhoods, making it harder for residents to move from renting to owning, according to Kirk Hudson, Broker at Baird & Warner. The resulting barrier to homeownership is driven by rental inflation, not mortgage rates. How Chicago’s 2024 Property Tax Increases Pushed ...