Property Sales Take Hits, Keep Punching

The $1.9-billion sale of 787 Seventh Ave. in Midtown Manhattan to CalPERS was the largest single-asset sale in H1 2016, according to RCA data.

NEW YORK CITY—The topline figure for the first half of 2016 shows a 16% year-over-year decline in the volume of significant US commercial property sales, Real Capital Analytics says in its latest US Capital Trends report. Yet RCA cites “healthier trends” behind the headline.

“The commercial property investment market weathered three significant shocks” in the year’s first half, but has rebounded with “an upward trend in prices and ongoing investor interest,” according to the USCT report. The series of shocks began with turbulence in the financial markets early in the year, continued through an 18% Y-O-Y volume decline in property sales during the first quarter and concluded with the unexpected results of the UK referendum on leaving the European Union.