National + Office | December 3, 2018

Political Division Clears Way for 2019 GDP Growth

A U.S. Congress divided in the wake of the 2018 midterm elections is less likely to hinder continued economic growth or dampen demand for commercial real estate, according to an outlook from Transwestern. Two years of anticipated gridlock ease fears that political or economic policy changes will derail business expansion plans, setting the stage for further job creation and modest gross domestic product (GDP) growth of about 2% in 2019.

Most notably, the U.S. industrial market remains red-hot with record-high port volumes, positive absorption and a vacancy rate that remained below 5% in the third quarter, despite the addition of new inventory. Prelease commitments in the sector are offsetting a large percentage of the 376 million square feet of new construction. Robust demand is expected to continue, as employment is trending up in construction, manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, and analysts anticipate a strong holiday shopping season.

While not as stellar as the industrial sector, the office market is enjoying stable vacancy and modest asking rent appreciation nationally. October’s 3.7% jobless rate signaled full employment by historical standards, but Transwestern expects recent retirees and others not counted as unemployed to re-enter the workforce in the coming year. Still, with dim prospects for increased immigration, a labor shortage could begin challenging economic growth by early 2020.

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About Dennis Kaiser

Dennis Kaiser is Vice President of Content and Public Relations for Connect Commercial Real Estate. Dennis is a communications leader with more than 30 years of experience including as a journalist and in corporate and agency marketing communications roles. He is responsible for Connect’s client content operations and is involved in a range of initiatives ranging from content strategy, message development, copywriting, media relations, social media and content marketing services. In his most recent corporate communications roles, he led a regional public relations effort across Southern California for CBRE, played a key marketing role on JLL’s national retail team, and was responsible for directing the global public relations effort at ValleyCrest, the nation’s largest commercial landscape services company. In addition to his vast commercial real estate experience, Dennis has worked on communications and launch strategies for a number of residential projects such as Disney’s Celebration in Florida, Ritter Ranch in Palmdale California (7,200 homes, 22,000 acres), WaterColor in Florida and PremierGarage in Phoenix. Dennis’s agency background included firms such as Idea Hall and Macy + Associates. He has earned an outstanding reputation with organization leaders as a trusted advisor, strategic program implementer, consensus builder and exceptional collaborator. Dennis has developed and managed national communications programs for Fortune 500 companies to start-ups, both public and private. He’s successfully worked with journalists across the globe representing clients involved in major-breaking news stories, product launches, media tours, and company news announcements. Dennis has been involved in a host of charitable and community organizations including the American Cancer Society, Easter Seals, BoyScouts, Chrysalis Foundation, Freedom For Life, HOLA, L.A.’s BEST, Reach Out and Read, Super Bowl Host Committee, and Thunderbirds Charities.

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