NEW YORK CITY—Paramount Group and STORE Capital are among five new additions to the MSCI US REIT Index, which has mainly grown steadily over the past decade.

DALLAS—An interest rate increase is not likely to put a dent in refinancing activity, the Butler Burgher Group CEO tells GlobeSt.com; there's too much maturing debt for that to occur.

NEW YORK CITY—Craig Bender, who oversaw the ING Real Estate Finance business in the US until 2013, has rejoined the company to develop and manage a new portfolio of commercial loans.

CARROLLTON, TX—With its own metro area of Dallas providing a case in point, MPF Research says "the factors that shape apartment demand are far more complex than any single variable" can capture.

CHICAGO and NEW YORK CITY—Domestically and globally, the Cushman & Wakefield/DTZ union will be “a formidable combination,” says Brett White, who will become chairman and CEO of the combined company.

SAN FRANCISCO—Starwood Property Trust's former president, Boyd Fellows, is part of a four-man team that collectively has closed more than 4,000 commercial real estate loans.

WASHINGTON, DC—“It is undeniable that the business of healthcare will remain as dynamic as the challenges facing it,” says DTZ's Lorie Damon. This bodes well for office, industrial and retail owners.

NEW YORK CITY—Q1 also saw the largest quarterly volume of cross-border investment in the US to date, Real Capital Analytics says in its latest Global Capital Trends report.