WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Retail Federation’s (NRF) chief economist Jack Kleinhenz surmises that the recession brought on by the outbreak of COVID-19 may have already ended. Citing encouraging tailwinds such as a rebound in jobs (7.5 million jobs in May and June combined) and a strong quarter by the stock market, Kleinhenz says that the recession could be over just as fast as it came, though that won’t be determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research for a while. “While it would be unusual for a recession to last less than six months, it is possible,” says Kleinhenz. “The bad news is there is plenty of uncertainty on the shape of the reopening of the economy, and the recovery will be slow even if we are no longer in recessionary territory.” Despite the upward trajectory of the U.S. economy on metrics such as consumer spending and retail sales, Kleinhenz emphasizes that the economic recovery will still be dictated by whether efforts to end the pandemic are successful. The veteran economist warns that the second wave of COVID-19 outbreaks in markets such as Florida and Texas is a “major threat” to the recovery. “These outbreaks are alarming, and if …
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have updated their multifamily forbearance programs for borrowers still being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In late March, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae enacted 90-day relief plans for borrowers. With that period ending soon and several borrowers still struggling to fulfill their mortgage payments in the midst of the outbreak, the two government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) have extended deadlines and terms of their respective forbearance programs. Under Fannie Mae’s guidelines, borrowers will have up to 24 months following its forbearance period to repay any missed payments. While in forbearance, a borrower may not evict any resident for missed payments. Borrowers with loans from both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae with a forbearance agreement in place may not charge tenants late fees or penalties solely because of the nonpayment of rent during the forbearance period or the borrowers’ repayment period. The forbearance program also requires borrowers to provide flexibility to tenants, allowing the repayment of back rent over time and not in a lump sum. The borrower must also give tenants a 30-day notice to vacate prior to any evictions taking place.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Smithsonian Institution has acquired the 318,557-square-foot West Tower of the Capital Gallery office property in Washington, D.C. for $254 million. The U.S. government entity, which operates 19 museums and nine research centers, will use the building as its new headquarters. Located at 600 Maryland Ave. S.W., the 10-story glass building makes up just over half of the two-building property, which totals 631,029 square feet of Class A office space. Smithsonian also acquired four floors of the eight-story East Tower. Smithsonian already leases office space within the building, and the acquisition is part of a plan to consolidate five office spaces in the Washington, D.C. area into a single location. The financial and administrative offices, currently located in Crystal City at 2011 Crystal Drive, in Arlington, Virginia, are the largest offices to move to the new administrative headquarters. Other offices to be consolidated include spaces at 955 L’Enfant Plaza S.W.; 425 Third St. S.W.; and 901 D St. S.W. The move is scheduled to begin early next year. “The reason for purchasing an office building near the National Mall is twofold — it is more efficient to have staff together in a central location and it is …
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nearly 1.5 million Americans filed first-time unemployment claims during the week ending June 20, the U.S. Department of Labor reports. The claims remain historically high in the midst of the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak, though the week-over-week numbers have declined for 12 consecutive weeks. The most recent figure was 60,000 fewer than the previous week’s total. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones anticipated a total of under 1.4 million claims for the week. Furthermore, the four-week moving average has also been steadily declining, dropping by 160,750 claims to 1.6 million, according to the Department of Labor. Continuing claims also fell by 767,000 claims to under just over 19.5 million. This is the first week since the economic shutdown in mid-March that continuing claims have fallen below 20 million.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Jefferson Apartment Group and Stars REI have delivered J Linea, a 132-unit apartment community in Washington, D.C.’s Shaw neighborhood. The property is situated at 2009 8th St., less than two miles from downtown D.C. J Linea offers studio, one- and two-bedroom floor plans, each featuring stainless steel appliances, quartz countertops and backsplashes, kitchen islands, plank flooring and floor-to-ceiling windows. Communal amenities include a fitness center, rooftop terrace, coworking booths, 24/7 Amazon Hub package system and 16,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space. The joint venture acquired the site in 2016.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Just over 1.5 million Americans filed first-time unemployment claims during the week ending June 13, the U.S. Department of Labor reported this morning. The most recent figure was a 58,000-claim decrease from the previous week, continuing an 11-week trend of lowering initial claims. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones forecasted an increase of 1.3 million claims. As the COVID-19 pandemic still hammers the U.S. economy, there are signs of a loosening grip, as the four-week moving average continues to trend downward. The moving average came in at 1.8 million claims, a decrease of 234,500 from the previous average. Additionally, the number of Americans on continuing unemployment dipped below 20.5 million, a slight decline of 62,000 from the previous week.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — JLL has arranged a $68.5 million refinancing loan for 1750 K St., a 165,604-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C. Bridge Investment Group provided the floating-rate loan to the borrower, Mirae Asset Global Investments. The 12-story property is fully leased to five tenants and is located within D.C.’s Golden Triangle neighborhood. Cary Abod, Rob Carey and Andrew Weir of JLL arranged the loan on behalf of the borrower.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have hired separate financial advisors to guide the agencies in exiting conservatorship. Freddie Mac has brought on J.P Morgan, and Fannie Mae has hired Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC. Both government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) are based in Washington, D.C. The Federal Finance Housing Agency (FHFA) became the conservator for both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2008 during the Great Recession to oversee the lending activity of the agencies. The FHFA helps ensure that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are providing counter-cyclical liquidity and support sustainable homeownership and affordable rental housing. The timeline for the GSEs to exit conservatorship was not specifically disclosed, though FHFA director Mark Calabria says it won’t be before 2024. The FHFA announced Freddie Mac’s and Fannie Mae’s intentions of exiting conservatorship in the 2020 FHFA Scorecard, which was released in October 2019. The Scorecard is a tool used to align the GSEs’ priorities and operations with FHFA’s Strategic Plan for the lenders.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The advance estimate for U.S. retail and food services sales, including e-commerce, in May is 17.7 percent higher than in April, the U.S. Commerce Department reported this morning. May is the first month since the COVID-19 outbreak halted the U.S. economy that has shown positive month-over-month growth. April was down 14.7 percent from March, and March decreased nearly 10 percent from February. Spending in May was at $485.5 billion, still lower than pre-pandemic levels. February’s total spending came in at $527.3 billion. “These sales numbers do not reflect the same strength we had going into the pandemic, but they certainly reflect the trajectory we need coming out of it,” National Retail Federation (NRF) president and CEO Matthew Shay said in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “The most important thing now is to keep these retail stores open for business and not penalize them by closing their doors in the event of a coronavirus surge. “As those stores that remained open have shown, retailers have developed solutions that protect the safety of their customers and associates, and they are sharing those lessons to the benefit of store owners large and small in communities across the country.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Law firm Wiley Rein LLP has signed a 166,000-square-foot office lease for its new headquarters at 2050 M St. in Washington, D.C. The law firm will occupy the third through seventh floors of the 11-story, 340,000-square-foot building, which is now 81 percent leased. The owner of the property, Tishman Speyer, delivered the asset earlier this year. The office space is part of the larger CBS Washington, D.C. bureau. As part of the development process, new CBS studios were constructed with a separate entrance. The building is located less than one mile from downtown D.C. and Dupont Circle. Lou Christopher, Jordan Brainard, Tim Dempsey and Greg Maurer-Hollaender of CBRE represented the tenant in the negotiation.