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By Gary Tasman and Shawn Stoneburner January 2020 seems like a lifetime ago, and as we think back to the start of the year, before the COVID pandemic changed the world, it’s difficult to recall where we were just 12 months in the past. Commercial property brokers and property investors entered 2020 with a great deal of enthusiasm. Vacancy rates were low, demand was high, and average rent rates were near historic levels in some asset classes. Developers were continuing to regard Southwest Florida with an optimistic eye. We all recall what happened after that. By Mid-March our economy and our optimism came to a screeching halt. Record numbers of Floridians filed for unemployment as businesses were forced to close or scale back, and Southwest Florida development activity came to a near- standstill. Nationwide, the U.S. economy collapsed at a 31.7% annual rate in the second quarter as schools, retailers, restaurants, theaters, hotels, and other businesses closed. Ready to make a move?  Get started by contacting us. It’s difficult to evaluate how our region – and our nation – has responded to the COVID recession. The last pandemic to make a significant impact on the economy was a full century ago, hardly a comparable era. What we do know is that as we enter 2021, we once again have reason for optimism. Ancient Greek philosopher Plato was the first to say that necessity is the mother of invention. Even 2400 years later, Plato’s words still ring true, as many recent innovations were necessitated by the pandemic. Necessity motivated biotechnology companies to develop innovative COVID-19 vaccines using groundbreaking messenger RNA technology. Necessity inspired the federal government to develop the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and other emergency relief. Necessity also stimulated corporations large and small to find new ways to conduct business when traditional interaction was off the table. Necessity has also sparked a rebirth in several sectors of the commercial property market, most notably industrial real estate. The jump to online shopping during the pandemic has made property in the industrial/logistics asset class hotter than ever before. “In the second quarter of 2020, internet sales surged 44.5% year over year,” explains Kevin Thorpe, chief economist and Ken McCarthy, principal economist, both of Cushman & Wakefield. “In this environment, it is no surprise that demand for logistics space is nearly back to pre-crisis levels and occupancy is near all-time highs.” Our local Southwest Florida market reflects this same international trend. Industrial class real estate is filling nearly as quickly as it becomes available, with just 3.4% of industrial properties currently vacant. Rent rates, which were already at historic highs at the end of 2019, are still climbing, presenting an excellent opportunity for owners of properties and those with land ready to develop. The office property market gave investors and brokers plenty of anxiety in March and April, as traditional offices closed their doors and transitioned to telecommuting. Those nerves from six months ago are quickly subsiding, as Southwest Florida properties in this asset class are also recovering quickly. Cushman & Wakefield data indicates this recovery will continue, following a national trend as our economy shifts to more service and knowledge-driven industries. “As the economy adds jobs, a greater proportion will be in an office-using industry,” stated Thorpe and McCarthy. Of course, the full picture isn’t completely rosy. Much of our economy has yet to recover. Southwest Florida’s unemployment rate at the end of the third quarter of 2020 was still a staggering 10.2%, well above the national average and an alarming increase over last year’s third quarter local unemployment rate of 3.8%. Our region’s dependence on retail and hospitality jobs will likely keep employment recovery slow – but there is light at the end of the tunnel. Florida’s low taxes, combined with our region’s high-quality workforce, safety, healthcare, and quality of life continue to make Southwest Florida an appealing destination for residents, vacationers, and new businesses. Companies worldwide are expanding and relocating to Southwest Florida. Home sales are skyrocketing, which will spark other sectors of our economy including construction, finance, retail, and hospitality. We’re not completely out of the woods yet, but the gloom and doom of Q2 2020 is fading. Necessity generates invention, and the Southwest Florida property market is continuing to reinvent itself. For commercial property owners, there are blue skies ahead, and the professionals at Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Property Southwest Florida have the knowledge and data to help you come out on top in 2021. Contact us for a complimentary property valuation and to learn how our best-in-class data and analytics can benefit you in the new year. If you have commercial real estate, the professionals at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida are an excellent resource as you consider your for selling, buying, and leasing. Cushman & Wakefield’s brokers have extensive local market knowledge and best-in-class data and analytics to guide your decision-making. Contact us for a complimentary, no-obligation property valuation by calling 239-829-5400 or contact-us.

By Gary Tasman With the holiday season officially here, our minds naturally turn to giving, and the same can be said of companies, who turn their thoughts to “corporate social responsibility,” a somewhat stuffy term we use to describe philanthropic activities and accountability to social or environmental issues. Social responsibility is more than a good deed. It is also a good business practice and should be part of every organization’s corporate DNA. Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida (CPSWFL) is proud to support a number of causes here in Southwest Florida—more about them later— because we care about our neighbors and know our support contributes to quality of life in our community. When local nonprofits thrive, it stabilizes our region and raises the tide across our entire community. By improving the quality of life in Southwest Florida, we create a positive domino effect, and make our area more attractive for growth. This leads to jobs, housing, and a stronger tax base to support the needs of our community. Every organization can adopt corporate social responsibility as part of its core business practices. Social responsibility doesn’t have to come in the form of financial contributions, although those are certainly welcomed by nonprofits.  Organizations with tight budgets can encourage leadership to lend their expertise on nonprofit boards of directors, organize employee donation drives, or even offer paid time off for staff members to volunteer. Social responsibility has been shown to not only improve employee satisfaction but also customer loyalty—meaning that your philanthropic actions will not only improve the community but also your bottom line. I’d like to shine the spotlight on some of the causes that our team supports at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida. This support comes in many forms, from financial contributions, to volunteer hours, to board membership. Children’s Network of Southwest Florida provides the Operation Santa program for local children in foster care. This year we’re partnering with Children’s Network to bring Christmas cheer to children in need by hosting an Operation Santa toy drive through Dec. 9. To learn more, visit www.childnetswfl.org. Keep Lee County Beautiful is focused on making Lee County a pristine place to work and play by inspiring, educating, and engaging our community in improving, beautifying, and protecting our environment. Since 2017, we have participated in the Adopt-A-Road program, and our team members are proud to keep our adopted roadway clean throughout the year. Apply to adopt a road at leegov.com/dot/adoptaroad/application. Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida inspires and prepares young people to succeed in a global economy. Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida reaches 11,600 students each year at schools and after-school organizations in Lee, Collier, and Charlotte Counties. We are gratified to be able to provide leadership for local programs that teach business acumen, problem-solving, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy to young people. More information can be found at juniorachievement.org. Residential Options of Florida (ROOF) is a nonprofit that helps people with developmental disabilities to successfully maintain affordable and inclusive housing of their choice. ROOF sponsors six three- and four-bedroom homes in Lee, Collier, and Charlotte Counties, and also helps adults with disabilities maneuver the complexities of available federal and state support programs. Florida is home to more than 300,000 individuals with developmental disabilities, and finding appropriate housing for adults with disabilities is a cause we’re proud to support. Learn more about ROOF at flroof.org. This Thanksgiving, CPSWFL also joined forces with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office to adopt five families in need. Our team gathered all the fixings for a traditional Thanksgiving meal, donated cash, and then delivered baskets to the families in time for a Thanksgiving feast. Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida is proud to support a number of additional nonprofits, community organizations and benefit events in our region, including American Heart Association Heart Walk, Aubuchon Helping Hands for the Holidays, the Bobby Holloway Jr. Memorial Fund, Catholic Charities Diocese of Venice, Chabad of Cape Coral, Champions 4 Children, Clinic for Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW), Community Cooperative, Evangelical Christian School, Florida Gulf Coast University, Habitat for Humanity of Lee & Hendry Counties, Harlem Heights Foundation, Hope Hospice, Oasis Elementary North, Pace Center for Girls, Rotary Club of Fort Myers South, St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, SWFL Children’s Charities/SWFL Wine & Food Fest, Urban Land Institute (ULI), and Valerie’s House. These organizations, and thousands of other notable nonprofits and civic-minded groups, are meeting many needs in our community. They support education, business, children, needy families, the environment, and other worthwhile causes. Each of them improves our quality of life and makes Southwest Florida a better place to live – not just for those they serve, but for all of us. If you have commercial real estate, the professionals at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida are an excellent resource as you consider your for selling, buying, and leasing. Cushman & Wakefield’s brokers have extensive local market knowledge and best-in-class data and analytics to guide your decision-making. Contact us for a complimentary, no-obligation property valuation by calling 239-829-5400 or contact-us.

By Shawn Stoneburner More than 100 years ago, our area’s most famous seasonal resident, Thomas Edison, famously said “There is only one Fort Myers, and 90 million people are going to find it out.” Ever since, Southwest Florida has struggled with its own success; we perpetually play catch-up to build infrastructure required to provide jobs and services for the residents who continue to move here in droves. Commercial development in the 1970s and 1980s focused on our coastal areas and US-41, catering primarily to sun-seekers and retirees. In the 1990s and 2000s, commercial development boomed in South Lee and North Collier Counties, thanks to plentiful available land and relatively low costs. Yet our largest population centers, Cape Coral and Lehigh Acres, are nowhere near the bulk of our region’s jobs. As a result of this irrational pattern of growth, the average one-way commute time in Lee County is now 42 minutes, according to Lee County Economic Development. That’s significantly higher than the commute times in many similar-sized metropolitan areas around the country. Ready to make a move?  Get started by contacting us. Fortunately, there’s good news for those of us stuck in traffic every morning. Employers are beginning to realize that it makes good financial sense to move their businesses closer to their workers. A 2018 study by global staffing firm Robert Half discovered that nearly one-quarter of American workers have left a job because of a bad commute. That translates to tens of thousands of dollars in hiring and training expenses and lost productivity per year even for small businesses, and millions of dollars annually for large employers. As a result, we’re seeing a rationalization of our marketplace across Southwest Florida. In Lee County, jobs are migrating closer to the center of the county, with the I-75, Alico Road, and Daniels Parkway corridors leading the way. This central region of Lee County, with close proximity to Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), is seeing exponential growth from both existing businesses and newcomers to our area. Commercial property in this area is booming. Land in close proximity to RSW already houses some of Southwest Florida’s largest employers, including Florida Gulf Coast University and Gartner. Massive new facilities for Scottlynn USA, NeoGenomics, and Alta Resources are moving into the neighborhood, and companies from across the nation are poised to follow. Central Lee County is on the short list for substantial new manufacturing, research and development, office, call center and distribution facilities. The anticipated result is 45,000 new jobs coming to Southwest Florida in the next five years and another growth spurt for our region. But unlike past growth spurts, today’s more rational market will be prepared for it. The new air traffic control tower and runway at RSW will help the airport accommodate more commercial traffic for these businesses, and new transportation corridors like the Daniels and Alico Road extensions are already improving commutes, particularly for Lehigh Acres residents. “The goal is not to grow just for the sake of growing. We want to achieve targeted growth that improves the quality of life for our residents,” says John Talmage, Director of Lee County Economic Development. “For example, right now the cost of commuting and maintaining a vehicle make up close to 25 percent of household expenses for people in Lehigh. But as jobs move north, those expenses decrease dramatically. Car costs will be closer to 10 percent of household expenses. That’s a considerable upgrade in quality of life.” Demand for property in central Lee County is high, and commercial property investors know that our supply of developable land is low because of the environmental sensitivity of our region. For owners of property near RSW, Daniels Parkway, or Alico Road, your acreage has never been more desirable for development. Our new, more rational marketplace has created an ideal time to consult with a broker and take advantage of Southwest Florida’s next growth spurt. The professionals at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida are an excellent resource as you consider your options. Cushman & Wakefield’s brokers have extensive local market knowledge and best-in-class data and analytics to guide your decision-making. Contact us for a complimentary, no-obligation property valuation by calling 239-829-5400 or contact-us.

By Shawn Stoneburner With election day now behind us, it’s important to understand how the election results may impact commercial property. A predictable pattern has emerged in the commercial real estate market. As with every election year, we’re facing a high degree of uncertainty about what lies ahead, and that uncertainty typically sparks a “wait and see” attitude among investors because of a fear of the unknown. Research shows us that there’s really no reason to let fear drive us to wait and see what happens. Whether the occupant of the White House wears a red or blue necktie actually has little traditional impact on the commercial property market. History shows us that even a dramatic shift in the presidency or congress doesn’t necessarily mean disorder or turmoil are on the horizon. “Commercial property has performed well under both parties,” says Kenneth McCarthy, Principal Economist with Cushman & Wakefield. “Since 1979… property index returns have averaged better than 8.5% annually under various democratic and republican administrations.” Ready to make a move?  Get started by contacting us. Obviously, the results of the election matter to each of us individually, but there are more significant factors for commercial property buyers and sellers to consider when evaluating their options. The market cycle, interest rates, employment levels, geopolitical events, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and consumer spending, as well as the pandemic, can all impact commercial real estate pricing levels and transactions. And while the political makeup of Washington, D.C. can influence each of these factors, the sheer number of variables in play prevents drastic change in the market even when there’s drastic change inside the Beltway. For example, a democratic administration could raise corporate taxes and reduce overall earnings. But that same administration might modify trade relations with our foreign partners and improve our nation’s GDP. Conversely, a republican administration may improve corporate bottom lines by lowering taxes on businesses. At the same time, those tax cuts could reduce available federal funding for the infrastructure needed to support growth. There are simply too many variables at work to make a significant short-term impact. Regardless of these facts, we will still face a period of election-related uncertainty in the real estate investment market. In 2020, this “wait and see” period could be longer than usual, with some Senate races still undecided and results of the presidential election are challenged in a number of lawsuits. It would be a mistake to look at this uncertain period as a negative and let fear keep us from moving forward. In many ways, this is actually a period of opportunity. The hesitation builds pent-up demand for commercial property, and at the same time means there’s less competition while other sellers wait to see how the situation will shake out. This supply constraint, paired with repressed demand, drives quicker sales and higher prices. If you’re considering selling a commercial property, this is a great time to consult with a broker about how to take advantage of the current market. With interest rates still at historic lows and the Southwest Florida population continuing to climb, buyers are ready to jump into the market. The sooner your property is on the market, the better positioned it will be to sell. The professionals at Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Property Southwest Florida are an excellent resource as you consider your options. Cushman & Wakefield’s brokers have extensive local market knowledge and best-in-class data and analytics to guide your decision-making. Contact us for a complimentary, no-obligation property valuation by calling 239-829-5400 or contact-us.