Commercial real estate market suffers worldwide

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, told CNBC that it may not be
until 2010 before there are any real signs of stabilization in the
commercial real estate market in the United States. Rubinsohn said
there is more bad
news to come in America. “Without the support of banks, one does worry
about how
much underlying support there will be from investors … I would not
imagine any stabilization in the commercial market in the next couple
of quarters,” said Rubinsohn. In the U.K., although capital value is down
45 percent and some companies are looking for real estate
opportunities, Rubinsohn said it is premature to predict when the
commercial market will stabilize. In emerging markets like Europe and
Asia, where there have been narrower investment opportunities and large
rent and property value declines, he said a lot will depend on the
underlying worldwide economy.