So say the panelists at RealShare Northern Virginia, held Thursday morning at Hilton McLean Tysons Corner. "Washington, DC and the surrounding area is not a commodity city," Dough Fleitt, CEO of America's Capital Partners, told the audience. "We are truly a special place [for investors] and we will recover earlier than the rest of the country."

Ironically, the economic crisis may have a residual positive impact on the DC area. The numerous government financial rescue plans--namely the Troubled Asset Relief Program--is generating about 40,000 square feet of additional demand for space in the immediate term, Bart Bush, assistant regional administrator for GSA's Public Business Service, told the audience. It may be that once the Obama Administration is installed, more space will be required, he said, or conversely--the new Administration might decide the space is sufficient.

Washington is also benefiting from the financial meltdown in other ways: a vacuum is being created as Wall Street shuts down and DC is stepping in the fill the void. "There is a brain drain occurring with New York, and Washington is one of the beneficiaries," Mark Levy, vice president and regional market officer for ProLogis, told the audience. Now these financial engineers are coming to work for the government, he said--but many of them will remain--and when the economy recovers, their input and strategies will benefit the region in the long run.

Even the Obama Administration's key goals--such as health spending--are going to help the area. Maryland's biotech and health care sector, Fleitt said, are poised to benefit from Obama's desire to greatly expand health insurance in this country.

To be sure, the multi-headwinds are serious right now, as the panelists were quick to point out. Jim Lee, president and CEO of Opus East, thinks the market is in for "another couple of years of pain" before a recovery is underway. Joe Stettinius, CEO of Cassidy & Pinkard Colliers said that it will be three to four years before developers are fully utilized.

Instant Insights /

Panelists Spy Opportunity Amid Market Gloom

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