Retail News Blog

In a recent article by Bloomberg titled ‘Starbucks Pushing Landlords for 25% Cut in Cafe Rents‘ Starbucks is still trying to cut operating costs. Their business model is changing and they no longer can sustain paying outrageously high rents and still turn a healthy profit. When their profits dipped down 69%, they began laying as [...]

Do you think the collapse of the real estate market place is determinism (by design) or randomness (everything means nothing)? We can not deny that we have experienced a “bubble”. A bubble merely transfers a share of the future demand into the present. It’s linked with dramatic valuations and always debt funded. It is this [...]

Recent events in the financial markets have led real estate investors to question the impact on the value of investment grade real estate. Uncertainty breeds risk and risk in real estate requires higher yields. This will lead to continued declines in values for the first quarter 2009. However, good quality industrial assets should fare well [...]

There were fewer sales in 2008 than seen in previous years. The reduced number of sales owes in some degree to the lack of credit available and the particular aversion to risk on behalf of lenders as well as investors in the current market. The uncertainty surrounding the ultimate fallout from the downturn in the [...]

“I rarely have a conversation these days where the topic of financing doesn’t arise as a serious concern for my clients. When the economy is robust, and the capital markets are frothy, financing a commercial real estate transaction is a relatively simple matter. However during today’s recessionary times, the commercial capital markets are severely constrained. Not only is the supply of capital tight, but the demand may be near all time highs as well. Depending on which industry source you quote there is between $150 and $200 billion dollars of CMBS debt maturing in 2009 alone. This figure doesn’t include maturing loans from insurance companies, banks and other lenders, which means that many borrowers will be forced to secure financing in a market that presently offers little liquidity.” (”Getting your Property Financed” – Jackson Cooper, SVN – Boise, ID)

Walgreens is a national, retail drugstore chain that sells prescription and non-prescription drugs and general merchandise. General merchandise includes, among other things, beauty care, personal care, household items, candy, photofinishing, greeting cards, seasonal items and convenience food. Walgreens’ sales of pharmaceutical items account for approximately two-thirds of all sales.
Walgreens was founded in 1901, and as [...]

The tension was high at the special meeting called by the Colorado Banker’s Association in early December. The bankers were gathering to listen to Dr. Tom Hoenig, President of the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City, discuss the current recession and to get his predictions on how long it will last. With the reputation of [...]

Capitalization Rate Analysis
In this article, a capitalization rate for a strip center is analyzed based on (1) market extraction; (2) national survey; and (3) debt coverage/equity dividend analysis. This is an in-depth analysis that shows how a capitalization rate can be derived when little data is available in a market area. This presentation is an [...]

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past year, you know we are in a recession. This recession has impacted everyone from the average Joe to leaders of fortune 500 companies. We know that the recession has hit retailers hard; but how bad is this situation affecting landlords?
Many retailers are searching for [...]

Many auto dealerships are going dark; over 21 in 2008 according to The Oregonian. In 2009 in the Portland Metro area alone we have seen some big names fall to darkness, most notably the Kuni Cadillac dealership that was located in Beaverton. For an auto dealership, the trade area expands beyond the immediate market area. [...]

PGP Valuation Inc is proud to bring you a Retail Newsletter for the first quarter of 2009. This four page newsletter talks about the economic market and its effects on the retail industry in the northwest and nationally.

Circuit City lost its battle with the recession early in the game and was forced into chapter 11 even after the initial closing of 155 poorly performing stores across the Midwest. With a lackluster showing of buyers to purchase existing leases and bleeding capital at the seams; no other choices were left but to close [...]

Consumer confidence is at a 40 year low of 37.7 in January of 2009 compared to 87.3 in January of 2007. A little background on consumer confidence: the index started in 1967 and was at 100 in 1985. What does this all mean for the retail industry? Consumer confidence is intrinsically tied to retail. It’s [...]