Greg Morris-state of the market for Denver commercial real estate Q3-2008Greg MorrisGreg Morris-state of the market for Denver commercial real estate Q3 2008
BrokerIPTV: Today we are talking with Greg Morris, CEO of Fuller & Company Commercial Real Estate. Greg, thanks for being with us. What is happening in the midst of this economy with commercial real estate? We have heard plenty about what's happening with residential. Can you give us an update? Are there... is there anything moving on your side? Greg Morris: Well, there is, but not to the extent that we have seen in the past. The biggest fundamental problem is the lack of lending, which in turn causes a real slow down and inability of buyers to purchase these properties and certainly on the high end institutional investment side, it is absolutely dead. Also, the residential land market is real quiet right now. <watch video> BrokerIPTV: All right. One of the things I love when you do is you go sector by sector in commercial real estate; if you could give me a quick overview of what is happening with retail and industrial and so forth... Greg Morris: Okay.
Well, how about
if I take a half a billion square feet of space, commercial space, in the Denver Metro Area and I
put it in about one minute? BrokerIPTV: Okay. Greg Morris: Does that work? BrokerIPTV: Yeah, it works. [laughs] Greg Morris: I will just go through the different disciplines. The office market is relatively flat. A lot of users are hesitant to expand or extend their lease terms simply because they don't know what the future holds. There is a real disparity between the central business district downtown, which is relatively healthy and the southeast suburban market, which is the Denver Tech Center, which is really flat; in fact, is gaining on... vacancies are starting to go up. The fundamental reason for that is the employment base. Downtown, you have the oil and gas companies, you have the good[Phonetic] law firms, and so you have a much more stable companies downtown whereas the south market is seeing the dregs of the residential downturn, where mortgage companies, title companies, and every affiliated company with the residential home buying industry has really suffered. Industrial is very, very sound[Phonetic]. Cubed distribution, warehouse space continues to be in good demand because we have the confluence of I-70, I-25, we have rail, we have airfreight, so that has been more positive. We have smart, big developers that are here and so industrial is relatively stable. Retail is a real scary topic these days. What you had is you had this huge demand from investors buying up these retail properties, driving the rents up and the competition between all retailers has gotten intense with the people like the Wal-Marts and the Targets and so on and so I think this holiday season is going to be a real tell tale sign for the future of the retail business. The land market is relatively flat. Investment market, there is no money out there. So, that's really been tough. The apartment market is doing well and that in part is due to the fact that the residential market has gotten so soft[Phonetic] so that's kind of an overview. BrokerIPTV: Where is the best buy right now? Greg Morris: Well, the safest buy is probably in the apartment, multi family market because of the instability in the residential for sale home market price. Next, I say is industrial. You know, these warehouses are really inexpensive to build, $40-50 a square foot compared to $200 a square foot for an office building and the tenant finish cost in industrial, you know I make the joke that it is... you take a broom and you sweep it out and it is ready to go whereas in these office buildings, you can spend $20, $30, $40, $50 a square foot just retrofitting a space for a tenant. It takes a long time to recoup that. BrokerIPTV: All right. Are there commercial brokers suffering in this economy as well as residential brokers? Greg Morris: You know there are a lot except for the real estate... BrokerIPTV: [laughs] Greg Morris: [Voice Cross Over] yeah, everybody is feeling it at every level, whether it is a leasing level, sale level, whether it is land or improved property, everybody is feeling it, but again, I think this is kind of a healthy thing because it is survival of the fittest. We have a little [Inaudible] within Fuller right now, it is darwinism at its finest, which is survival of the fittest and if you can't hang in there during this time, you are not going to be part of what I think is going to be just the most incredible real estate run we have ever seen in a few years. BrokerIPTV: Greg, thank you. Appreciate it. Great having you. Greg Morris: [Voice Cross Over] Great. Related PostsQuality, Versatility And Design Are Key To Denver Custom Home SuccessMike Bradley on the economy and the housing market in Denver Greg Morris Fuller Commercial - Denver To Rebound In 2008 Market Conditions will make us stronger Says Fuller's Greg Morris The Rich Get Richer And Everyone Else Reads The Newspaper http://www.brokeriptv.com/000284 Posted on October 31, 2008 09:58:40 by Mark.Eibner
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