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.
Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 469.68 points, or 2.8%, to 16,058.35. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index dropped 58.33 points, or 3%, to 1,913.85. The NASDAQ composite lost 140.40 points, or 2.9%, to 4,636.10.
U.S. crude fell $3.79 a barrel to close at $45.41 in New York. Brent Crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, fell $4.59 to close at $49.56 in London. Wholesale gasoline fell 10.3 cents to close at $1.396 a gallon. Heating oil fell 12.3 cents to close at $1.578 a gallon. Natural gas rose 1.3 cents to close at $2.702 per 1,000 cubic feet.
US stocks plunge after bleak Chinese manufacturing report — Stocks plunged again Tuesday, continuing a rocky ride for Wall Street, after an economic report out of China rekindled fears that the world’s second-largest economy is slowing more than previously anticipated. The sell-off adds to what has been a difficult few weeks for U.S. and international markets. U.S. stocks just closed out their worst month in more than three years. Tuesday’s drop also dashed hopes that, after some relatively calm trading Friday and Monday, the stock market’s wild swings were coming to an end. (Yahoo)
RFR Realty Looking to Rent Park Ave. ‘Jewel’ to Single Tenant “When Aby Rosen’s RFR Realty bought 281 Park Ave. So. last year for $50 million, it didn’t plan for the six-story building to fade into the background of the commercially strong but architecturally monotonous boulevard.” (New York Post)
Vacant Herald Examiner Building in Downtown L.A. to Be Converted to Mixed Use “The former offices of the Herald Examiner opened a century ago on Broadway with red-tiled roofs and prominent arches in the Mission Revival style inspired by California's past.” (Los Angeles Times)
China's Rate Cut to Impact Real Estate Activity Going Forward “China's recent rate cut, in reaction to their plummeting stock market, will have a ripple effect across their entire real estate economy going forward, according to new market analysis by CBRE.” (World Property Journal)
A $150M Park Avenue Office Tower Renovation Finally Pays Off for Vornado, SL Green “A $150 million renovation of 280 Park Ave. is paying off for the city's two biggest commercial landlords. Vornado Realty Trust and SL Green Realty Corp., the owners of the 43-story office tower, signed a new tenant and expanded the leases of existing ones at the 1.2 million-square-foot building.” (Crain’s New York Business)
WeWork Could Have Trouble Meeting $10B Financial Projections “WeWork, a startup that leases office space to other startups, is now worth $10 billion, but an investor presentation obtained by The Information suggests the long-term financial situation of the company may be perilous.” (The Real Deal)
Manhattan Gets First Crowdfunded Condos “New York’s first real estate project financed significantly though crowdfunding is set to open, a step forward for a nascent investing model that has yet to prove itself in commercial property.” (Bloomberg)
Ashford Hospitality Explores Strategic Alternatives “Ashford Hospitality Prime Inc., a REIT that specializes in hotel properties, may be for sale. The company’s directors have tapped Deutsche Bank Securities to explore “strategic alternatives,” which always includes the possibility of a sale.” (Commercial Property Executive)
Can Real Estate Cause Another Slowdown in GDP? “To be clear, this article is less about real estate and more about how real estate affects the most commonly used inflation indicator, the Core Consumer Price Index (CPI ex energy and food). Core CPI is cited by the FED as an integral view into the health of the economy—f it is meeting its target, than the US is on its road to healthy growth. The problem is that targeted Core CPI walks a thin line.” (Seeking Alpha)
Washington Metro Area REIT Lands $67M Loan for D.C. Office Buy “First Potomac Realty Trust, a Maryland-based real estate investment trust, borrowed a $66.78 million loan from KeyBank and an insurance separate account to finance its acquisition of a nine-story office building in Washington, D.C., Commercial Observer has learned.” (Commercial Observer)
IKEA Has Already Conquered the World—Here’s How Its Design Chief Plans to Engineer the Future “Like no furniture company before it, Ikea has conquered the world. … But Ikea is just getting started.” (Business Insider)
US factory output up in August at slowest pace since May ’13 — A strong dollar and China’s economic slowdown dragged growth at U.S. factories to the lowest level since May 2013. The Institute for Supply Management reported Tuesday that its manufacturing index slid to 51.1 last month from 52.7 in July. It was the second straight drop; economists had been expecting the index to rebound modestly in August. Anything above 50 signals growth. The report suggests that a strong dollar and slowing growth in China and other foreign markets may be taking a toll on U.S. manufacturers and perhaps the overall American economy. The rising dollar makes U.S. goods more expensive in foreign markets. Two surveys released Tuesday showed that Chinese manufacturers continue to struggle. (ABC News)
US construction spending reaches highest level in 7 years — U.S. construction spending in July climbed to its highest level in more than seven years, boosted by an increase in the building of houses, factories and power plants. The Commerce Department said Tuesday that construction spending rose 0.7%t to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.08 trillion, the highest level since May 2008. The report also revised up the June increase in construction spending to 0.7% from 0.1% previously. (Inside Business)
Approaching health law tax is not just a levy on luxury — The last major piece of President Barack Obama’s health care law could raise costs for thrifty consumers as well as large corporations and union members when it takes effect in 2018. The so-called Cadillac tax was meant to discourage extravagant coverage. Critics say it’s a tax on essentials, not luxuries. It’s getting attention now because employers plan ahead for major costs like health care. With time, an increasing number of companies will be exposed to the tax, according to a recent study. The risk is that middle-class workers could see their job-based benefits diminished. (ABC News)