Employment report has analysts split on commercial real estate outlook

Buried in the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ July employment report, released last week, is data that shows the loss of 6,000 jobs in temporary help services. According to Robert Bach, chief economist for Grubb & Ellis, that’s bad news for commercial real estate. Since that indicates less demand for full-time workers, “it points to a slower leasing market and continued strength in investor demand for core assets,” Bach said. Still, others were less pessimistic. “While [economic] growth has been tepid thus far, and meaningful job gains have et to materialize, vacancy rates for each property type will likely peak this year,” said Hessam Nadji, managing director of research services for Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, who attributed his positive outlook to modest gains in private sector employment. [Retail Traffic Mag]