Some Positive Signs for PDX Commercial Real Estate During Fourth Quarter

NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson has released its Fourth Quarter 2010 quarterly reports for office, industrial, retail and multifamily commercial real estate, as well as its economic report.

Office vacancy in Central City decreased to 11.78%, with a few significant leases. Suburban office vacancy fell slightly to 23.88%, with 121,056 sf absorbed. One of the larger leases of the quarter was ACS taking 30,656 sf at Triangle Pointe for a new call center. Vancouver office vacancy rose slightly to 18.7%.

Industrial vacancy fell slightly to 15.01%, with 108,375 sf absorbed. As one recent study showed, the industrial sector is a bright spot in Oregon’s economy, and the Port of Vancouver has recently seen heightened activity with BHP Billiton’s 60-acre lease.

Retail vacancy was stable at 6.4%, with 81,081 sf absorbed. The area’s first H&M opened in November at Pioneer Place, and H&M also leased nearly 20,000 sf at Washington Square. Ross Dress for Less and Dick’s Sporting Goods also signed significant leases during Fourth Quarter.

The Fourth Quarter ended with a flurry of multifamily investment sales. The $79 million sale of Ladd Tower and $70 million sale of the Palladia Apartments were just two of the significant sales of the quarter. Apartment vacancy also fell to 3.09%.

Full reports can be accessed here.

NAI Global Releases Global Market Reports

NAI Global has published its 25th annual Global Market Report, containing information on commercial property in more than 200 markets around the world, including Portland.

2010 was a tough year for the commercial real estate market, but recovery is starting to occur, and there's some room for optimism.

“Although 2010 was another very challenging year for the industry, we began to see clear signs that the global economy and commercial real estate markets had stabilized and were beginning to improve with a noticeable pickup in transaction volume around the world,” said Jeffrey M. Finn, President & CEO of NAI Global. “Companies around the globe are taking advantage of the current market, extending or renegotiating leases, securing investment properties, disposing of underperforming assets and finalizing plans for growth in the next 24 months. We expect a much more active market for buyers, sellers and occupiers as conditions continue to improve.”

The full report can be found here, and the snapshot of Portland is on page 124. It discusses Portland's office, industrial, retail and multifamily markets.

NAI NBS an Oregon Most Admired Company for Sixth Consecutive Year

For the sixth consecutive year, NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson was recognized as one of Oregon's Most Admired Companies, based on a survey of Oregon CEOs conducted by the Portland Business Journal. NAI NBS ranked third out of the top ten Most Admired Commercial Real Estate Companies. President J. Clayton Hering accepted the award at a luncheon held at the downtown Hilton yesterday. About 1,800 CEOs and top-level managers in Oregon and Southwest Washington were surveyed to determine the Most Admired Companies.

Hering Featured in Oregon Business

Norris, Beggs & Simpson Companies President J. Clayton Hering was profiled in the December issue of Oregon Business magazine. Click here to read the article. Clayton has been with NBS since 1972, and became president of the company in 1993. He is very active in civic organizations and the arts, serving on the board of the Oregon Symphony and on the Young Audiences Advisory Board, among others.

NAI NBS Property Managers Win Big at Oregon Chapter IREM Awards

NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson had a great showing at the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) Oregon-Columbia River Chapter Annual Awards Ceremony last week. NAI NBS was named the Accredited Management Organization (AMO) Firm of the Year. Kimberly Fuhrer, who works out of our Vancouver office and is IREM's Vice President, Member Services for 2011, was named Certified Property Manager (CPM) of the Year. Traci McCauley, IREM's Vice President of Education for 2011, was honored for Outstanding Member Participation of the Year. Debra McCracken, another Vancouver property manager and IREM's 2011 President, was recognized with the President’s Award.

A number of other NAI NBS property managers will also hold leadership roles in IREM in 2011:

Nutan Engels - Community Service Committee Chair
Monique Clouser - Income/Expense Committee Chair
Christina DuCoté - Legislative Committee Chair
Stephanie MacPherson - Newsletter Committee Chair

Congratulations to all! NAI NBS has a strong asset/property management division. Our current portfolio is about 7 million square feet, 345 residential units and 117 acres of land, around the Portland metropolitan area and Vancouver, Wash. NBS Multifamily Management, a division of Norris, Beggs & Simpson Cos., manages the residential portion.

Gresham's Burnside Commons Lands First New Tenant Since Change in Ownership

Gresham’s Burnside Commons has secured its first new tenant since FMK Properties – Burnside, LLC purchased the property in July.

Gresham Therapeutic Massage Center leased 3,899 sf, and the lease began Oct. 15. NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson Senior Vice President Jack McConnell represented the landlord, and Bill Butler of Web Properties, Inc. served as a consultant on the lease.

Gresham Therapeutic Massage Center, a locally-owned business, found precisely what it was seeking in Burnside Commons: a larger space with good street exposure that had an improved interior and was ready to occupy. The business was previously located in a space on Burnside about half a mile from Burnside Commons.

Since health care is one area of the economy that is growing, brokers are seeing increased activity from health care tenants, McConnell said.

Burnside Commons is a 38,053 square foot, three-building retail property built in 2001 and 2006 at the intersection of Burnside and Eastman Parkway. Burnside Commons’ owners are still working on lease-up of the property, which has considerable vacancies.