Real Estate's Execs' Opinion of Market Improves

Real Estate Execs' Opinion of Market Conditions Less Bad Than Before

Real estate professionals' opinion of market conditions improved slightly during the third quarter, but their outlook for the future remains far from rosy.

Seventy-seven percent of those surveyed by the Real Estate Roundtable in the third quarter said property values were down from a year ago. That compares to 93 percent who reported valuation declines in the previous quarter's survey. The portion who said credit availability had worsened from a year ago dropped to 28 percent from 71 percent in the previous quarter's survey.

Looking ahead, 95 percent surveyed expect debt-market conditions to remain at least the same or improve over the next 12 months, while 71 percent expect property values to remain about the same or improve.

The Roundtable said the somber sentiment underscores a need for the government to reform the taxation of foreign entities' dispositions of U.S. property, and to expand the ability of the federal Term Asset-Backed Lending Facility, also known as TALF, to foster CMBS issuance.