NEW YORK CITY-The Morgan Stanley REIT Index is down 0.9%, while the much pummeled Nasdaq returned a 12.1% gain year-to-date. Fourth quarter FFO is expected to be up thanks to healthy real estate fundamentals and strong internal growth.

NEW YORK CITY-The acquiring company, RentPort, updates credit bureaus about the payment histories of tenants. The firm it purchased, CreditRetriever, provides access to the prospective tenant's credit history.

NEW YORK CITY-Up to 25 buildings with 477 apartments and 26 stores are being sold, with the proceeds to be reinvested in the local real estate market.

NEW YORK CITY-The new group will identify and develop e-commerce and traditional opportunities for the real estate services firm. Falus had been president of Cushman & Wakefield of New York Inc.

NEW YORK CITY-The US properties are spread over 21 states. The Canadian facilities, which include 10 golf centers, are being offered as a group.

NEW YORK CITY-The improved ratings are attributed, in part, to the firm's successful integration of two recently acquired firms, the variety of its products and the diversification of its real estate loans by geography and tenant mix.

NEW YORK CITY-REIT mutual funds had net inflows of $2.4 million, although assets had their first week-over-week decline in more than two months. Many investors are focused on what the Fed will do about interest rates.

NEW YORK CITY-C&W expects that other transactions in the works will prove just as successful and boost the health of the Mexican banking system.