Urbanexus Update - Issue #33
Please scroll down for the weekly compilation of analysis, reporting and opinion about real estate and community development. Note that some links may lead to material that is behind a paywall.
Real estate and the economy
Real estate rallies on strong earnings, robust jobs report
Good riddance, October. US equity markets rallied more than 2% on the week as strong earnings and solid economic data eased investor fears.
Q3 2018 GDP details on residential and commercial real estate in the USA
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that investment in non-residential structures decreased at a 7.9% annual pace in Q3. Investment in single family structures was $286 billion (about 1.4% of GDP), down slightly in Q3 compared to Q2, and multi-family structure investment also decreased in Q3. Home improvement was stable at a $264 billion in Q3 (about 1.3% of GDP.)
Retail real estate
A special Sears bankruptcy report from Marcus & Millichap
The ability to adapt and innovate are proving to be a critical key to success in the retail sector as reiterated by Sears’ recent bankruptcy filing. Though the move will leave behind large blocks of vacant space, many investors are optimistic that they will quickly backfill those locations with high quality tenants or by adapting the space into industrial, office or even self-storage.
Big and small projects
A big mixed-use development in San Diego
Manchester Financial Group has launched Manchester Pacific Gateway, a $1.5 billion redevelopment of the Navy Broadway Complex in downtown San Diego. Situated along the waterfront near the central business district, the new 3 million-square-foot mixed-use complex will include a new 17-story, Class A office building to be occupied by the U.S. Navy.
A public-private partnership failure — www.urbanexus.com
Here is a small scale example of one of the challenges of public/private partnerships--the Uptown Parklet in Seattle, WA, USA.
Leaving California
Boise and Reno attract Californians Sky-high housing prices in the Golden State bring an echo boom—and new neighbors—to other Western states.
Environment and resilience
Adaptive reuse — www.washington.edu
Construction and operation of buildings constitutes more than 40 percent of our total energy consumption, results in half our carbon emissions, and consumes 3 billion tons of newly extracted raw materials annually in the USA. Kathryn Rogers Merlino, University of Washington associate professor of architecture, has authored a book that makes the case for the environmental benefit of reusing buildings rather than tearing them down and building anew.
Around the world
Can Bamako flush its 'open-air toilet'? — www.thisisplace.org
According to Protos, a Belgian charity that promotes access to safe water, more than 85 percent of Bamako households handle their own sanitation – meaning they have to dispose of any wastewater and excrement themselves.