SIOR National Conference News

Just returned from the SIOR National Conference in San Antonio Texas (www.sior.com). These conferences are usually a good barometer of what the country is seeing in the office and industrial real estate sectors. To say the tone of the last few conferences has been depressing would be a major understatement. (NOTE: SIOR members are some of the most experienced and successful players in the industry). Those venues (while very worthwhile events) were laced with lower attendance (not cheap to go to these conferences), negative attitudes and bleak outlooks. This Fall’s conference was much more upbeat and, while attendees (and speakers) felt the recovery was going to be long and tedious, most felt the worst is over and that things are looking up!  Lease rates firming up…positive absorption (finally!) and companies looking at expansion projects again. And while the clear indication is that new job employment is still going to be suppressed (1-1.5 new jobs annually the next few years – not enough to get the employment rate down significantly), companies WILL continue to see record (or near record) earnings and begin new initiatives/projects (i.e. starting to spend their hoards of cash).

We shall see…but the new optimistic (albeit…reserved optimism) sure beats the alternative! And who knows…sometimes optimism creates momentum…and momentum starts the wheel turning again…something we haven’t seen for quite some time!

Keep smiling!

Mark