Northeast

When it comes to the Philadelphia real estate market, the retail industry is the hot topic for many commercial real estate agents. Per a Center City district report released in early December of 2016, the city has experienced a $1 billion surge in retail spending. Subsequently, prime retail rents in Philadelphia have risen by almost 90 percent in the past five years — second to only Miami when compared to cities across the nation. Sales of retail centers in center city peaked in late 2016 at over 18 percent higher than their former top-most numbers, seen in 2008. Popular Philadelphia areas such as Walnut and Chestnut streets have been subject to high-end retail rush. The retail spending increase is thought to be a direct result of the Philadelphia metropolitan area’s new job positions. Going into the fourth quarter, the city increased its jobs by 2.2 percent compared to the previous year’s numbers. Philadelphia’s local rate of employment stood at over half a percent higher than the national employment rate in late 2016. Many of the new positions — created in well- paying, upper-echelon employment sectors — have facilitated a rise in the median household income, and subsequently the disposable income, …