MIAMI—It's hard to get everyone at a commercial real estate conference to agree on everything. But there's one thing upon which speakers at the Akerman Summit did agree: suburban areas and secondary markets are still far from recovery. Indeed, competition is fierce in gateway cities such as New York, Miami, Houston, and San Francisco that guarantee the most yield.

Len O'Donnell, president and COO of USAA Real Estate, explained that the reason for declining acquisitions in urban areas is not because of balance sheets or the financial position of companies, but due to competition and the volatility of the overall market. As the peak years of debt maturity approach, investors are focused on recapitalizing existing ventures; bridging debt rather than acquisition opportunities.

Meanwhile, 20% of executives see hospitality as the most active sector in commercial development. Only 14% believe retail is seeing the most activity.