The Impact of the Presidential Election on Commercial Real Estate

Courtesy of National Post News

Who will it be, Obama or Romney? Have you already decided who to vote for the next presidential election?

Have you thought of the impact it will have in your business, in your life, in your future?

Regardless of who the winner is, there’s a long controversy on what will be the impact on commercial real estate.

Below a few opinions gathered by NREI online magazine.

Kevin Hackett, president & CEO, Rockefeller group: The election will lead to an increase in market activity in the short term. Investors and companies that were delaying decisions will begin implementing preconceived strategies and watch Washington for cues on policy direction.

Joe Harbert, President Eastern Region Colliers International:  We are a polarized nation that needs to reach for the middle and start to solve some of the big issues we all know we have. Job creation. Growing the economy. Tackling the deficit. Education. Energy. Progress on these issues will only come if we enter into a new, more bipartisan era.

E. J. Burke, Vice chairman, Mortgage bankers association: the outcome is likely to have the most impact on taxation, especially private equity carried interests, and housing reform/multifamily finance. This will affect the flow of capital into commercial real estate and, in turn, impact valuation.

Based on the last presidential elections, we do believe that there will be an increase in the market activity as many companies postpone their office search until after the elections, same as constructors who postpone their projects until they know what to expect from the future.

For now we must wait until November 6^th to know who the new president will be and the impact it will have in our lifes and our business.