Tale of Two Real Estate Markets

In general, commercial real estate has slumped since the start of the pandemic. But bright spots remain - including distribution warehouses. Home price, by contrast, are souring, particularly in suburbs and smaller cities.

Commercial

2020 Losers:

• Department stores
• Shopping malls
• Specialty retail
• Hotels

2020 Winners:

• Warehouses
• Self-storage facilities
• Supermarkets and pharmacies
• Restaurants with takeout/delivery service

Office Vacancies

• 17.4% office vacancies expected in 2020
• 12.8% office vacancies in 2019

Residential

• The national median listing price is $350,000, up 10% from 2019
• Average time spent on market:
  • 2020: 56 days
  • 2019: 61 days
• Newly built single-family home sales are up 43.2% as of August 2020, year over year from August 2019

Factors influencing housing prices in 2020:

• Low interest rates
• Low inventory (down 36.4% from 2019)
• Pent-up buyer demand
• Shift from cities to suburbs
• Remote workers want more space

Sources: U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, Cushman & Wakefirled, Realtor.com, ManageCasa, CNN