{"id":1004815712,"date":"2026-10-16T08:19:05","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T16:19:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/?p=1004815712"},"modified":"2026-10-16T08:25:46","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T16:25:46","slug":"why-retail-is-the-belle-of-the-ball-office-is-thawing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/why-retail-is-the-belle-of-the-ball-office-is-thawing\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Retail Is the Belle of the Ball and Office Is Thawing"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Zachary
Zachary Streit<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Every week I talk with owners of retail and office properties who assume the debt markets have written them off. The headlines have spent years telling them so. Right now, that assumption is wrong for retail and only half right for office, and knowing the difference is worth real money at maturity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the last 12 to 18 months, my team has closed approximately $150 million across six retail financings and approximately $100 million in office transactions. The two asset classes tell very different stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Retail: Lenders competing hard<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Retail has become the belle of the ball. Each of our retail financings went to between 75 and 100 lenders, and the response was deep. We saw leverage up to 75 percent of cost on ground-up construction and permanent pricing as tight as SOFR + 150. Lenders that spent years avoiding the sector are now actively chasing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reason is simple. Years of limited new construction and steady tenant demand have left well-located centers with strong occupancy and durable cash flow, and lenders have noticed. Banks, life insurance companies and debt funds are competing for the same quality retail deals, and that competition shows up in proceeds, pricing, and structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For retail owners, the risk isn’t a closed market. It’s leaving money on the table by refinancing with the first lender that says yes. When this many lenders want the deal, a real process pays for itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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CPE Capital Markets Newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Executive Editor Therese Fitzgerald delivers the capital markets intel that moves the needle.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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