Editor's View

Unemployment in the commercial real estate business continues to take its toll, but job-seekers are not expressing despair, say two officers with a Tampa-based employment service for the industry.

Ron Weaver, founder of Real Estate Lives, and Pam Winchester, a Navigator for the organization, say the word "hopeful" best describes candidates who are working with the organization to refine their skills and re-launch themselves professionally.

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The days of the twice-monthly, on-your-doorstep Florida Real Estate Journal newspaper have come to an end.

Why? Simple, really. It boils down to technology, demographics and economics.

The Internet has changed everything about the business of delivering information. Anyone with Web access can get access to information that is more immediate, more comprehensive and less expensive than ever before.

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At the close of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in September 1787, an eager Mrs. Powel is said to have approached Benjamin Franklin with the following question:

"Well doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” she asked.

Franklin responded: "A republic - if you can keep it."

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Amendment 4 stands a good chance of passing in November. But it's hardly inevitable, and there's still plenty the commercial real estate industry can do to derail it - perhaps once and for all.

That's the opinion of two longtime observers who have been following the ups and downs of this ballot-box planning initiative for years. The measure - sometimes known as Hometown Democracy - would require voter approval of any comprehensive plan changes on the local level.

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Time is growing short for commercial real estate industry professionals to alert their elected representatives about the economic dangers in a proposal that would increase the tax rate on carried interest to 39.5%.
That rate currently stands at 15%, and it provides much of the incentive that a general partner in a real estate partnership needs to carry the risk of the venture and see it through to a successful conclusion. The new rate would subject the general partner's profits to income taxation equal to that paid by America's highest earners.

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“Life and liberty are secure only so long as the right to property is secure.”
That’s the introduction to a section devoted to property rights in The 5000 Year Leap: A Miracle That Changed the World. Produced by the National Center for Constitutional Studies, the book traces the development of some 28 principles that were vital to the understanding of our Founding Fathers as they crafted the U.S. Constitution.

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The new president of the Florida CCIM Chapter recently told Florida Real Estate Journal that the organization is more relevant than ever as the commercial real estate industry finds itself in the middle of an epic financial downturn.
But Paul White, also director of KW Commercial at Keller Williams Realty Premier Properties in Miami, added that the CCIM organization hasn’t been immune to the impact of the recession.

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I love my Sony Digital Walkman. Readers might remember that I acquired this MP3 player just after Christmas a year ago and had begun using it to catch up on my "reading" by putting audio books on it.
Well, I'm happy to report that the device helped me consume 31 books last year and six so far this year, not including three in progress.
If you're interested, here are some of the titles that might be worth your time:
- Your Money and Your Brain by Jason Zweig: The longtime money writer for Money magazine, Time and the Wall Street Journal explores the neuroscience of investing.

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This time it just might work. The recent announcement that Merlin Entertainments Group Ltd. purchased the Cypress Gardens theme park in Winter Haven came as welcome news to us at Florida Real Estate Journal. Considering the park is almost literally in our back yard, we will be watching in anticipation for the promised economic impact to Polk County and Central Florida.

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Carl Schurz (1829-1906) was a German revolutionary, American statesman and reformer, and Union Army general in the American Civil War. In 1869, he became the first German-born American elected to the U.S Senate, according to Wikipedia, and in later years was a prominent independent in American politics, noted for his high principles, his avoidance of political partisanship, and his moral conscience.

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Carl Schurz (1829-1906) was a German revolutionary, American statesman and reformer, and Union Army general in the American Civil War. In 1869, he became the first German-born American elected to the U.S Senate, according to Wikipedia, and in later years was a prominent independent in American politics, noted for his high principles, his avoidance of political partisanship, and his moral conscience.

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So what can we expect - economically speaking - for the new year? I recently read an interesting forecast from the Wells Fargo Securities Economics Group titled Annual Economic Outlook - 2010. It was nothing if not thorough, so I’ll provide what I hope is a good summary here. You can download the whole thing from www.wellsfargo.com/com/research/economics.

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Hopefully, it’s the shape of things to come for commercial real estate.
I just had an interesting - and encouraging - discussion with Mark Cooney, president of The Land Sharks, the land brokerage division of The Duncan Companies in Tampa. He runs the show with fellow ex-GVA Advantis alums Randy Mills and Michele Whalen.
Cooney said the last 60 days or so have seen a 50% increase in activity on the land side of their business - which focuses on outparcels and infill sites in an area reaching from St. Petersburg to Daytona Beach, south to Naples and as far north as Gainesville.

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For all the talk about down markets and high anxiety in commercial real estate these days, a relatively young Tampa-based retail investment sales firm is seeing some good times right now.
Since its inception just over three years ago, Plaza Advisors has sold 22 shopping centers - including six so far this year, with three more in the pipeline.
Company founder and co-managing partner Jim Michalak said the sales are indicative of several things about the Florida retail scene - not the least of which is the general lack of liquidity.

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John Stone, director of multifamily investments for Colliers Arnold in Clearwater, has been around commercial real estate for a long time. He doesn’t strike me as a person given to extremes of pessimism or enthusiasm about the business.
Professionals, like John Stone, understand their industries and are usually measured in their responses to whatever comes their way.

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