Commerce Communique'

Companies ready to do some hiring: Manpower survey displays a hint of employment optimism (JSOnline)

At least one leading indicator in metro Milwaukee, which hemorrhaged jobs in the last two years, suggests that employers are prepared to begin hiring.

Job prospects in the four-county area that encompasses Milwaukee and Waukesha ranked 13th out of 201 metropolitan areas, according to a quarterly survey of employer expectations compiled by Manpower Inc., the global staffing services company. The Milwaukee-Waukesha area was in a group with four other metropolitan areas that compiled the fifth-highest score in the survey.

Employers surveyed in the region expect "to hire at a solid pace during the second quarter," according to the survey, which reports its findings for the nation as a whole as well as U.S. metro areas and 36 nations around the world.

If the findings didn't come from a credible source - Milwaukee-based Manpower has compiled the index since 1962 - the prediction might be met with as much disbelief as skepticism in southeastern Wisconsin.

Read the entire article: http://www.jsonline.com/business/87074062.html

Optimism growing in commercial real estate industry (RichmondTimesDispatch)

Virtually everyone in commercial real estate these days will say things are better than they have been in some time.

Though not altogether supported by the data, a positive outlook is spreading slowly but surely into the business.

Nothing compares well with commercial real estate activity in the good old days of 2007, but "off the bottom" is not a bad place to be when the industry's prospects over the next few years "could threaten America's already-weakened financial system," according to a recently released government report.

The 183-page report was completed by the Congressional Oversight Panel, whose task was to assess commercial real estate loan loss risk to the country's financial stability.

Read the entire article? http://www2.timesdispatch.com/rtd/business/local/metrobusiness/article/LITT0308_20100307-170008/328927/

Distributors choose Ogden / Bike company plans to open center in November (StandardEx)

OGDEN -- A Minnesota company plans to finalize its purchase of about eight acres from the city for the construction of an 85,000 square-foot bike distribution facility.

The deal is expected to close March 11 and work on the building, located off 12th Street east of the Ogden Nature Center, is to start in April and finish in November, Kim Brown, director of distribution for Bloomington, Minn.,-based Quality Bicycle Products, said Wednesday.

"We are very excited to be a part of the Ogden community," she said.

The city plans to sell QBP about four acres it already owns and about four adjoining acres it will acquire from the Ogden School District, said Richard McConkie, the city's director of community and economic development.

Read the entire article:

http://www.standard.net/topics/business/2010/03/03/distributors-choose-ogden-bike-company-plans-open-center-november

U.S. Industrial Property Review: Sector outperforms other property types (nreionline)

It may not be considered the sexiest or most exciting property type, but industrial real estate’s stability and growth opportunities in 2010 put the sector head and shoulders above other types of commercial property.

“There was less overbuilding in the industrial sector and overall vacancy is below that of retail and office properties, so fundamentals are better and perhaps more appealing,” says Micheal Palmer, senior managing director with Studley’s Houston office. “When the economy truly picks up, industrial users are at the forefront of activity to meet demand and landlords may be able to increase rates at that time, likely in advance of office and retail owners.”

Wall Street analysts and industry professionals expect the industrial property sector to show marked improvement this year, driven by improvement in the manufacturing and import/export industries.

Read the entire article: http://nreionline.com/globalrealestate/mar10_article1.html

Fitness centers like 24 Hour Fitness are filling vacant spaces in shopping centers (SeattleTimes)

No longer the 90-pound weakling of the commercial real-estate market, fitness centers are muscling into prime shopping space ceded by traditional retailers.

"We have a joke in our industry that the way you know a shopping center is in trouble is if it has a wig store and a nail salon," said Jeff Green, a San Francisco Bay Area retail consultant. "Fitness centers are somewhere between that and traditional retail."

Now though, amid a widespread pullback in consumer spending, shopping centers are turning to fitness centers as retailers close stores or stop expanding.

The vacancy rate for retail properties in the Puget Sound region topped 6 percent in 2009, up from 4 percent in 2007, according to Pacific Real Estate Partners. In the past two years, the region's average annual asking rent has dropped 18 percent to $19.31 a square foot.

Read the entire article: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/retailreport/2011260501_retailreport05.html

Commercial mortgage terms likely to loosen in 2nd half of 2010 (Finance-Commerce)

The good news from the commercial mortgage market is that there’s a market at all.

In 2009, the business virtually disappeared as most lenders fell victim to the capital markets breakdown and to lending terror.

But industry observers are now saying that life insurance companies, the traditional leader in the long-term commercial mortgage market, announced that they were back in the game — and may double the money they allocate to mortgages in 2010.

Read the entire article: http://www.finance-commerce.com/article.cfm/2010/03/05/Commercial-mortgage-terms-will-likely-loosen-in-second-half-of-2010

Hard-money lenders see an opportunity in Clark County (LasVegasSun)

Hard-money lenders want to capitalize on distress in commercial real estate and the foreclosures that may hit that market.

Investors, hard-money lenders and mortgage brokers attended a conference last week at the Monte Carlo to discuss the industry and opportunities they are expecting in 2010.

Hard-money lenders are companies, groups or individuals that as investors loan money at higher rates and fees than banks. Hard-money lending is a tool widely used by the real estate industry.

Leonard Rosen, a former anchor at the Financial News Network who hosted the seminar, said the market is imploding with $300 billion of $1.8 trillion in commercial mortgages in arrears in metropolitan areas. Las Vegas has the highest percentage of troubled commercial real estate in the country.

Read the entire article: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/mar/05/hard-money-lenders-see-opportunity-clark-county/

Export sector strong in Utah, experts say Signs of economic recovery are occurring (ParkRecortd)

According to the most recent monthly report from the Department of Workforce Services, job losses in Summit County and the rest of the state continue despite belief that economic recovery is underway.

The most recent data is for the month of January, in which the state reports Summit County lost 600 jobs. January's employment was also down 8.6 percent from a year ago.

Summit County's unemployment rate for January or February is not yet available but has always exceeded the state's average since the start of the recession. The state's unemployment rate climbed again to 6.8 percent as the national rate continues to decline and is back in single digits. About 91,500 Utahns were believed to be jobless in January that's 14,000 more than a year ago.

Read the entire article: http://www.parkrecord.com/summit_county-business/ci_14499716

St. George, UT Job market shows signs of recovery

ST. GEORGE - Statewide employment losses are showing signs of moderation, and experts are anticipating job growth by the end of the year.

In January, Utah recorded a 2.9 percent employment contraction, representing a year-over-year loss of about 35,300 jobs, but the decline is substantially less severe than those recorded last year, according to a recent report released by the Department of Workforce Services. The state witnessed a 4.4 percent decline in August of last year, losing more than 55,000 jobs from the previous year according to a September 2009 report.

Although overall job losses are apparently showing signs of moderation, the January report acknowledged the perceived improvement is also a reflection of the comparison between the current figures and the dramatic losses experienced in 2009.

Read the entire article: http://www.thespectrum.com/article/20100304/NEWS01/3040306/Job+market+shows+signs+of+recovery

Washington unemployment rate rises to 9.3 percent (PugetSoundBus.Journal)

Washington state’s unemployment rate rose to 9.3 percent in January from December’s adjusted rate of 9.2 percent. But state officials were pleased that the state added more than 12,000 jobs in January — the first monthly gain since 2008.

According to the state Employment Security Department, Washington added 12,400 jobs in January, including 3,000 in retail trade and 2,800 in educational and health services.

“This is a positive sign for Washington state,” Gov. Chris Gregoire said in a statement.

The U.S. unemployment rate in January was 9.7 percent, down from 10 percent a month earlier.

In Seattle, the unemployment rate in January stayed at 8.9 percent, the same as in December 2009.

State labor economist Dave Wallace said he is pleasantly surprised at the job growth, especially in construction. Wallace said he remains ‘cautiously optimistic,” but said he expects to see more turbulence in the employment picture in the months ahead.

Read the entire article: http://seattle.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2010/03/01/daily13.html