PHOENIX—If you walked the miles and miles (and did I mention miles?) of show floor at RECon last year and talked with most of the exhibitors, the majority were nearly giddy with excitement over the recovering state of retail. And it was justifiable to a degree, since the market sector had been the poster child of the last downturn.
But, of course, real estate is still local and more nuanced, as Jan Fincham, and Patrick Dempsey, principals in the Phoenix office of Lee & Associates, explain. Don't get me wrong, they're both enthused about the direction the asset class is going. But they're also realistic in acknowledging that there's still some post-recessionary catching up to do.
The focus for the smart investor, they say, is the shopping center, in particular grocery-anchored centers, and the best bets live at the top and the bottom of the market. Or as the Lee partners say: the trophies and the trash.
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John Salustri
John Salustri has covered the commercial real estate industry for nearly 25 years. He was the founding editor of GlobeSt.com, and is a four-time recipient of the Excellence in Journalism award from the National Association of Real Estate Editors.
