Why Commercial Real Estate Survived the Pandemic

One of the most surprising resiliencies of the pandemic is the commercial real estate industry, It hinged on the flexibility and focus on newly emerged themes in commercial real estate trends.

The industry fared much better than what investors and professionals predicted when the majority of the country shut down last year. While some retail and office segments experienced crises, the pandemic had a relatively minor impact on commercial real estate as a whole.

While commercial real estate sales did fall during the pandemic, it was not as drastic during previous recessions. International and domestic interest in real estate in the U.S. never fell.

Commercial real estate sales fell during the pandemic, but not as precipitously as in previous recessions, the report noted. Domestic and international investors’ interest in U.S. real estate never really flagged.

According to the annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate, published by PwC and Urban Land Institute, trends and forecast report published annually by PwC and the Urban Land Institute, “With low debt levels and relatively stable cash flows, borrowers continued to pay their mortgages, and distressed sales were few — to the shock and disappointment of many opportunistic investors looking for a deal”.