RCA in the commercial property press:

Retail Distress - Chicago Strip Mall Vacancies Climb

Crain's Chicago Business reports: Vacancy rates are climbing as lenders take back properties from owners who can't pay or refinance their mortgages. In the Chicago area, 65 retail properties worth around $1.1 billion are showing signs of financial distress or are already in trouble, according to commercial real estate research firm Real Capital Analytics.

Lenders so far have been reticent to seize properties and sell them at today's discounted values. "Most lenders are still kicking the can down the road," says Sherwood Blitstein, a principal at Northbrook-based Mosaic Properties & Development LLC.

But there are indications of some movement, which could enable new owners to make more aggressive deals to lease up their retail centers. Late last month, Blitstein's firm bought a three-year-old shopping center in South Elgin anchored by a Home Depot for about $24 million after a bank took the property back when the developers couldn't pay off $37 million in debt.

Articles related to this topic:

 List of Lender-Owned Office Properties Growing
 Columbia Center Misses Loan Payment
 Mezzanine Debt Used to Acquire Cheap Office Property
 Over $187 billion in Distressed Property Nationally
 Retail Investment Sales Make Progress
 Retail Center Sells for $50 Million in Cash
 ICSC and Real Capital Analytics Launch Global Shopping Center Directory

Posted by: Mark Alferman

<< Prev

Next >>