A weekend topic starting with Good Returns in New Zealand. "As the property landscape changes, yields are, once again, starting to move to centre stage for investors. Yet Kiwibank’s latest property market report reveals that the once stellar yields available in many regional markets are now on the decline. The bank’s chief economist Jarrod Kerr says the decline in regional yields follows the sharp fall in yields which occurred in the Auckland market when property prices took off well in excess of rental gains."

"He says that what happens when prices rise too far, too fast, and rental yields fall too fast too fast is that investors go on the hunt for yield elsewhere. Last year, for example, Whanganui had yields of 9%, a shortage of property and rents were going up. Yet Kerr says that, just a year on, demand means Whanganui prices have been pushed up while yields have gone down."

"'The same can be said for the mighty Hawke's Bay, Gisborne, Palmerston North, Northland and other regions… But the rise in property prices, and fall in rental yields, outside Auckland is perfectly rational,' he said. At the same time, rental yields in Auckland are actually rising because property prices are falling, modestly, compared to a continued rise in rents, Kerr says."

"'The Auckland market is stabilising and finding its footing. Prices will start to rise again at some stage but prices are still coming off now,' Kerr said. 'It helps investors’ decisions. If you are interested in a property and the yield is 2.5% it’s not so attractive. But if you can get one and the yield is 3.5% to 4% that makes it much more so. It’s makes much more financial sense.'"

From The Real Deal on Florida. "Amid an influx of new high-end apartments in Miami, rent growth is starting to slow down in downtown Miami and South Beach, according to a new report. The slowdown in rent price growth shows that after years of rising prices, rents are starting to stabilize in Miami amid a glut of inventory from new apartments and condos that are being rented out. In West Miami and Doral, monthly rents actually decreased 2.2 percent to $1,850, the report shows."

"From June 2018 to June 2019, 4,815 apartments were delivered in South Florida. Since 2014, more than 20,000 Class A apartment units have come to market in Miami, according to a TRD analysis of data from Integra Realty Resources."

The St Louis Post-Dispatch in Missouri. "T.E.H. Reality, on a buying spree of low-income housing apartment complexes despite mounting complaints from existing residents, has said the firm has plenty of money to go around and a plan to make improvements. 'We are in the middle of making it happen,' Eliram Rabin, co-founder of T.E.H. Realty, told the Post-Dispatch in late March."

"He spoke then during a meeting at Park Ridge Apartments, a 336-unit spread that was refurbished in the past 15 years with the help of about $15 million in low-income housing tax credits. But after a year of owning Park Ridge, one of 12 complexes the firm purchased in the region since late 2014, T.E.H. Realty lost the property. Meramec Enterprise Holdings II LLC recently purchased the property at a foreclosure sale."

"'The owners of this project were not meeting their financial obligations, but more importantly were not meeting their obligations to the tenants for a safe and healthy living space,' Lynn Ziegelmeier, a spokeswoman for Meramec said Friday. 'The bank has foreclosed and now Meramec Enterprise Holdings II LLC will begin the important work of improving these apartments for the people who live there now and future tenants.'"

"In October, Ferguson authorities told residents of one Park Ridge building to evacuate in 24 hours because a block of concrete had fallen from a second-story walkway. Other substandard living conditions and building code violations were reported. T.E.H. Realty has said it was making improvements. But in June, following inspections, the Housing Authority of St. Louis County said it would not allow new subsidized housing vouchers to be used at Park Ridge and four other properties owned by T.E.H. Realty, one of the largest providers of affordable housing in the region."

The Times Union in New York. "A lofty plan to turn the former Kenwood Academy into a large development of apartments, townhomes, hotels and arts and entertainment facilities has ground to a halt, with developers owing millions of dollars through a defaulted loan, overdue taxes and unpaid contractor services. Developers owe over $1.5 million in unpaid city, county and school taxes, interest and penalties, and unpaid contractor services, and face foreclosure on a $5 million mortgage loan from TBG Funding, LLC, court documents for the mortgage foreclosure show."

"Civil court and Albany County records paint a bleak picture for the project that aimed to construct 13 apartment buildings, six clusters of townhomes and two hotels as well as space for retail, an art gallery and an amphitheater. While brokers selling the property tout $15 million in improvements, it’s unclear what work was done. The entrance from South Pearl Street was closed Friday. Two permits for building and plumbing work were taken out by developers for the project, but they expired earlier this year, city officials said."

"Despite the apparent work, Kenwood Commons filed a grievance last week over the property’s assessment in May, claiming the property is worth just $1.8 million, a 90 percent decrease from its current $18 million assessment. City Planning Commissioner Chris Spencer said it's hard to predict what issues a project may face, or whether a contractor has the capacity to complete a project."

"'You can't foresee all the contingencies that might happen,' Spencer said. 'Something unforeseen could eat up a lot more, and there's a bit of a snowball effect. 'You’re not getting the full tax revenue on a project. If it’s retail, you don’t have that activity on the street. You’re not creating the vibrancy that was promised.'"

The Buffalo News. "Robert C. Morgan, the embattled Rochester developer who faces federal mortgage fraud charges, has transferred about half of his properties to a joint venture with a Pennsylvania company, according to court documents. An affiliate of the joint-venture partner also has taken over management of at least one of the properties, according to the documents."

"The affected properties represent about half of Robert Morgan's empire of 180 properties and 36,000 units in 14 states, including in the Buffalo area, where he owns or controls several thousand apartments. The future of the other properties remains uncertain. Robert Morgan, who built up his real estate empire over the last 28 years after being paralyzed by an armed robber, has been charged with mortgage and insurance fraud in a 114-count federal indictment, following a multiyear probe by the FBI and U.S. Attorney's Office in Buffalo."

"His son, Todd; Buffalo mortgage broker Frank Giacobbe; and Morgan's finance director, Michael Tremiti, are also charged in the indictment. Morgan's nephew, Kevin; Giacobbe's former deputy, Patrick Ogiony; and Morgan's former chief operating officer, Scott Cresswell, have all pleaded guilty and are cooperating with authorities."

The Wall Street Journal. "Don’t blame all the vacant stores on e-commerce. Sky-high rents are squeezing retailers, too. Although commercial retail rents are down from recent peaks, they haven’t fallen as fast as sales at struggling chains. The rents remain higher than prerecession levels in many prime shopping areas such as Manhattan, Los Angeles and Dallas."

"In a high-profile example of this tug of war, Barneys New York Inc. has hired restructuring advisers and is considering several options including a possible bankruptcy filing, as it seeks to renegotiate the lease on its Madison Avenue flagship and other locations, according to a person familiar with the situation."

"The landlord raised the annual rent on the Madison Avenue store earlier this year to $27.9 million, from $16.2 million, this person said. Barneys fought the rent increase but lost during an arbitration proceeding. Reuters earlier reported that Barneys had hired restructuring advisers. 'Compared to a decade ago, rents are still up considerably—and for some retailers, it’s too much,' said Nicole LaRusso, director of research and analysis at CBRE Group Inc., a commercial real-estate company."

"Landlords say it isn’t that simple. They argue retailers fueled demand with a flood of store openings coming out of the 2008 recession. And even when the landlords dangle lower rents, it is hard to tempt retailers to open stores when they are retrenching. 'We’ve cut rents by 30% and are offering all sorts of concessions, but we still have vacant space,' said William Friedland, a principal with Friedland Properties, which owns commercial real estate in Manhattan."

"Some chains wound up paying as much as 30% of their sales in rent, double the historic norm, industry executives said. 'At that point you are on your deathbed,' said Nina Kampler, a consultant who works with retailers looking to reduce their store base."

"In other cases landlords have an incentive to leave space vacant because slashing rents would violate their loan agreements, industry executives said. Moreover, any devaluation of the property would make it harder for them to borrow in the future. Commercial rents in San Francisco are up 53% from a decade ago, and in Miami they are 46% higher, according to CBRE. Even in smaller cities, such as Nashville and San Jose, Calif., rents are up by nearly one-third."