CRE 2020: What to Expect

A recent NREI slideshow “Breaking Down CBRE’s 2020 Market Outlook” reviewed economic development, tax rate cuts, CRE investment, cap rates and market trends, among other topics, when considering what’s in store for 2020.

In general, I agree with CBRE’s assessment that a slowdown in absorption will occur in all sectors as supply continues to grow. We are gradually moving to the confluence of oversupply and slow down. When that becomes problematic and to what extent it creates opportunities or problems is hard to predict. I started thinking about this a few months back in “Development Market Phase: How Long Will It Last?”

As expected, the impact on individual sectors will be uneven. In my opinion, retail faces the greatest degree of uncertainty due to online shopping and shifting consumer buying habits. I can’t believe that the multi-family sector doesn’t have significant overhang already, and office will be negatively impacted by the WeWork pullback.