Real Estate Daily News Buzz is designed to give news snippets to readers that our (yet to be award winning) editors thought you could use to start your day. They come from various business perspectives, real estate, government, the Fed, local news, and the stock markets to save you time. Here you will find the headlines and what the news buzz of the day will be.
Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 142.79 points, or 0.7 percent, to 20,412.16. The S&P 500 index added 12.15 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,328.25. The Nasdaq composite gained 29.83 points, or 0.5 percent, to 5,763.96.
Benchmark U.S. crude oil fell 93 cents, or 1.7 percent, to settle at $52.93 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, fell $1.11, or 2 percent, to $55.59 a barrel. Natural gas fell 9 cents, or 3 percent, to $2.94 per 1,000 cubic feet. Wholesale gasoline fell 5 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $1.54 a gallon and heating oil lost 4 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $1.63 a gallon.
Global stocks continue to rise, US indexes hit records again — Stocks around the world continued their march higher on Monday, and U.S. indexes again hit new highs. Strong gains for Citigroup and other financial stocks helped the Standard & Poor's 500 index rise to its third record-setting day. Stocks have resumed their rally in recent days after stalling for a couple weeks.
Billionaire Real Estate Mogul Sam Zell Sees Staggering Economic Opportunity Under Trump “Amid extraordinary political developments for the U.S., Chicago-based business mogul Sam Zell tells TheStreet he sees ‘staggering economic opportunity’ for the nation under the presidential authority of Donald Trump. Trump's vow to cut government regulation that he calls ‘excessive’ could lead to ‘a $1 trillion of (economic) stimulus without spending anything, while Obama added $1 trillion to U.S. debt’ to prop up the U.S. economy, Zell said.” (The Street)
U.S. Inflation Expectations at Highest Level Since 2015: NY Fed “A measure of U.S. inflation expectations rose for a second straight month in January to its highest level since mid-2015, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of New York survey released on Monday that reinforced the view that interest rates would keep climbing. The survey of consumer expectations, an increasingly influential gauge of prices for the U.S. central bank, found that year-ahead inflation expectations increased to 3.0 percent, from 2.8 percent in December and 2.5 percent in November.” (Reuters)
Judge denies request to halt Dakota Access pipeline work — A judge has rejected a request by two American Indian tribes to halt construction of the remaining section of the Dakota Access oil pipeline until their lawsuit over the project is resolved. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, in Washington, D.C., issued the ruling Monday. The Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Sioux requested the injunction last week after Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners got federal permission to lay pipe under a Missouri River reservoir in North Dakota.
How Trump Can Save NYC’s Real Estate Market “New York’s commercial real-estate market, a prime mover of the city’s economy, has managed to stay aloft since the Wall Street crash despite missing a wing. Repeal of onerous Dodd-Frank regulations can restore the lift. But will it come in time? Wall Street’s largest banks have historically driven the office market. But since 2010, they’ve sat on the sidelines for several reasons.” (New York Post)
Better Know a Lobbyist: Q&A with Bill Killmer of Mortgage Bankers Association “Many banks and financial institutions say many of the new rules make lending too expensive or limit access to debt too much. These groups don’t always agree on which protections in Dodd-Frank they’re willing to live with and which ones they are not, but President Trump has made it clear he aims to take an hatchet to the regulations as quickly as he can. Enter Bill Killmer, senior vice president of legislative and political affairs at the Mortgage Bankers Association, one of the most prominent real estate trade associations on the Hill.” (The Real Deal)
Moinian Group Launches Financing Arm, Hires Jonathan Chassin “The Moinian Group has launched a lending division, Moinian Capital Partners, Commercial Observer can first report. The platform will provide senior mortgages, mezzanine loans, preferred equity and construction loans starting at $25 million, and finance large institutional assets within the hotel, office, retail, land and residential sectors. Jonathan Chassin will lead Moinian Capital Partners in his new role as managing director at the company.” (Commercial Observer)
New 1.4MSF Industrial Park Coming to Inland Empire “Trammell Crow Co. has been selected to construct Columbia Business Park, a Class A, 1.46 million-square-foot speculative industrial development in Riverside, Calif., by Washington Capital Management Inc., advisor to property owner Operating Engineers Pension Trust, Local 12. TCC’s SoCal—Newport Beach Business Unit is handling the development of the three-building, 72-acre project.” (Commercial Property Executive)
New York City Retail Market Slows From Peak “Following a tremendous run-up in rents over the past four years, average-asking rents eased in 2016, alleviating some pressure felt by tenants. Of the 16 retail corridors tracked by CBRE, 11 saw decreases year-over-year; in aggregate, all corridors dropped 4.1%. Several corridors, notably Madison Avenue, the Broadway section of SoHo and 14th Street in the Meatpacking District, saw an increase in available storefronts during 2016, further indicating a slowing market. Further leeway in landlord concessions, tenant allowances and additional rent-free periods are being seen across the market.” (World Property Journal)
World’s First Triple-Flagged Hilton Lands Financing “HFF has arranged $78 million in construction financing for a 466-key triple-flagged Hilton hotel now beginning development across the street from Chicago’s McCormick Place convention center. HFF worked on behalf of the developer, Michigan Cermak Indiana LLC and First Hospitality Group, to place the construction loan with The PrivateBank. The hotel, reportedly the world’s first to feature three Hilton brands, is being built on a 0.87-acre site at 123 E. Cermak Road, at the southwest corner of Cermak Road and Indiana Avenue in Chicago’s South Loop.” (Commercial Property Executive)
Albert Boscov, Retailer and Philanthropist, Dies at 87 “Albert Boscov, a retail industry giant and head of the department store chain that bears his name, died Friday in Reading. He was 87. Boscov disclosed Feb. 1 that he had late-state pancreatic cancer and his death was announced in a press release from the department store Friday night. The department store chain started in the Reading area in 1914. Albert Boscov was the company’s long-time CEO who briefly retired, then returned in 2008 to bring the company out of bankruptcy.” (LancasterOnline)
CRE Data Start-Up CrediFi Raises $13M in Series B “Real estate debt data company CrediFi landed $13 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total capital raised to $23 million. Liberty Israel Venture Fund, which typically invests in Israeli tech companies, led the round, which also included 31 VENTURES Global Innovation Fund and existing investors, CrediFi said in a statement. The company plans to use the money on expanding its sales and marketing efforts, and on an unnamed ‘major upcoming product launch.’” (The Real Deal)