The likes of RREEF buying in Dallas is "good testimony that the downside risk barrier or safety nets are in place," Russell Ingrum, first vice president of CB Richard Ellis Inc. in Dallas, explains to GlobeSt.com. "The stigma associated with the Dallas market seems to be evaporating."

Everyone's taking a "best guess" as to what caused the attitude adjustment. More important than the cause is it appears to be a clear sign institutional investors are positioning themselves in key markets with historical growth patterns that spell profit. "The investment community is assuming those will be the first to come back," says Ed Frieze, research director for Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP, headquartered in Dallas.

Frieze says the region's job numbers are partly responsible for the current interest. Yes, Dallas-Fort Worth did lose 26,100 jobs in the past year, but--and it's a big but--job growth for the first six months of 2002 showed a gain of 35,600 positions. The numbers teamed with Dallas' history as a moneymaker for the corporate world translate into a good formula for those with the ability to buy.