New York City Mayor Eric Adams recently announced his vision to streamline the process for business expansion and adaptive reuse of empty office buildings to affordable housing. This is a good first step. The real challenge, however, is not so much the zoning regulations, but more so the time and expense required to develop these […]

Many industries are facing the reality that business will not be as usual post-pandemic. In hindsight, the pandemic seems to have created short-term unrest in the commercial real estate industry from the standpoint that low interest rates and easy access to capital has kept properties in many asset classes afloat. Looking ahead, however, rising interest […]

Adaptive reuse is not a new concept in commercial real estate. However, the convergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, technological advancements, and calls to embrace environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards has helped accelerate this concept. With rising industrial and housing demand leading the way, the “everything old is new again” mindset has helped to repurpose […]

Mention “mall,” “hotel,” or “land” to many commercial real estate lenders and it will likely be a short conversation – for good reason. Retail properties have been suffering for years due to the rapid growth of e-commerce. Hotel cash flows can be erratic, particularly when a pandemic comes along, and halts worldwide travel. Land values […]

There’s been a lot of reports lately that major cities like New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles are losing thousands of people to the “glorious” states of Florida, Texas, and Nevada, to name a few. The suggestion is that the old Gateway Cities are done for, given their high taxes, cost of living, […]

For Women’s History Month, we asked the ACRES team to share which women inspired them and had an impact on their lives. For Chief Marketing Officer Lynne Viccaro O’Leary, that person is American scientist and autism activist Dr. Temple Grandin. “Dr. Grandin is not only renowned for her groundbreaking work for the humane treatment of […]

For Black History Month, we continue to honor pioneers of our industry. Maggie L. Walker (1864-1934) was the first African-American woman in the U.S. to charter a bank, the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank, and serve as its president. The bank’s leadership also included several female board members. As an advocate of African American women’s […]

Viola Mitchell Turner (1900-1988) was hired by North Carolina Mutual Insurance (NCMI) in 1920. Turner became the personal secretary to Charles C. Spalding, one of the North Carolina Mutual Insurance founders. Over 36 years Turner slowly rose through the ranks of NCMI, with her investment advice and portfolio management earned the company over $1 million. […]

To paraphrase Twain, rumors of the demise of student housing development for this year were greatly exaggerated. Student housing can be categorized as the collapse that never was. After a strong 2019, occupancy rates remained relatively strong in 2020, even during the prolonged lockdown and pandemic-related restrictions. In fact, the industry reported collections above 97 […]

In honor of Black History Month, ACRES continues to celebrate pioneers of our industry. Jane Bolin (April 11, 1908 – January 8, 2007) achieved many firsts: She was the first woman of color to graduate from Yale Law School, the first to join the New York City Bar Association the first to join the New […]