A report from the Oregonian. "Tenants who still have a source of income are finding that rents are flattening, to their benefit. And some apartment managers, hoping to fill units in a market that had a recent flood of new buildings, are offering incentives and move-in specials. Harrison Tower near Portland State University, which is beginning its gradual reopening, will deduct up to $1,200, waived a pet deposit and application fees, and charge a $100 security deposit for new leases."

The Silicon Valley Business Journal in California. "The San Jose metro area saw a 71% increase in the number of apartment properties watchlisted by loan servicers between mid-March and mid-June, with 12 multifamily properties flagged this month with total outstanding loan balances of $237.6 million. The nation's months-long struggle to regain its economic footing amid the Covid-19 pandemic is stretching consumers to a breaking point, with the latest signs of distress flaring in the U.S. apartment market."

"A Business Journals analysis of construction and mortgage data identified a significant pullback in multifamily building permits and building starts since February, when the initial coronavirus shocks hit the U.S. economy. The retrenchment foreshadowed pain and, in some circles, opportunities to come. As of June 15, the Business Journals identified 4,966 multifamily properties around the U.S. flagged by loan servicers for issues threatening their operations and financial health, a 46% increase over the 3,403 given the same 'watchlist' status in March."

"While concerns ranged from low occupancy levels to maintenance needs, the vast majority of issues cited among the newly minted watchlist properties were related to Covid-19, according to dozens of loan servicer notes reviewed for this story. The reports are posted monthly by analysts who track commercial mortgages securitized and sold to investors ranging from large mutual funds to pension plans to retirees."

"Overall, the San Francisco metro area saw an 11% jump in the number of watchlisted multifamily properties between March 15 and June 15, with loan balances on 119 such properties totaling more than $1.9 billion. To the south, the San Jose metro area had 12 multifamily properties flagged by loan servicers as of this month, with total outstanding loan balances of $237.6 million, marking a 71% increase in the number of watchlisted properties since mid-March."

From Socket Site in California. "The weighted average asking rent for an apartment in San Francisco has now dropped to $3,825 a month. While that’s not exactly cheap, it’s nearly 7 percent ($275) cheaper than four months ago, 10 percent ($450) cheaper than at the same time last year and 14 percent ($625) cheaper than a 2015-era peak of around $4,450 per month. At the same time, offers of complimentary rent are on the rise, driving effective rents down even more."

"The number of apartments listed for rent in San Francisco jumped again this month and there are now nearly twice as many apartments being advertised for rent in the city than at the same time last year."

The Commercial Observer on New York. "The owner of a NoMad building sued flexible workspace provider Knotel for skipping out on its rent payments during the coronavirus pandemic, court records show. Knotel allegedly owes $169,040 to 25 West 26th Street Inc. — which property records tie to Brooklyn-based Noam Management — after it stopped paying rent from March until June for its 10,000-square-foot space at 25 West 26th Street, according to the lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court."

"The suit, which names Knotel CEO Amol Sarva directly as the defendant, said that Knotel signed a 10-year lease for the entire third through sixth floors of the seven-story building in 2017. While Knotel paid its $39,776 monthly rent for the space in January and February, it stopped paying in March, according to the suit. It’s at least the second suit Knotel has faced over missed payments during COVID-19. Earlier this month, the owner of a San Francisco building sued Knotel for about $55,636 in missed rent, the San Francisco Business Times reported."

"Knotel and the flexible office space market has been reeling during the pandemic as its members were forced to work remotely. Knotel has said that one-third of its members are looking for rent breaks, The Real Deal reported. In March, Knotel laid off 30 percent of its 400 employees and furloughed another 20 percent while 10 people on its management team slashed their salaries to cut costs, as Commercial Observer previously reported."

The Associated Press. "Hotel owner and developer Danny Gaekwad survived steep drops in business after the 9/11 attacks and the recession of the late 2000s, but nothing prepared him for the revenue tailspin that followed lockdowns and travel restrictions in March to stop the spread of the new coronavirus."

"At one hotel, a Holiday Inn in Ocala, Florida’s horse country, revenue last April was $38,000, a drop of almost 90% from the previous April. His problems were compounded by the type of loan he took out for the hotel — a $13 million loan that was bought by Wall Street investors. Commercial mortgage-backed securities loans like the one Gaekwad has for the Holiday Inn are packaged in a trust. Investors then purchase bonds from the trust using properties like a hotel as collateral."

"The loans are attractive to borrowers because they typically offer lower rates and longer terms. About 20% of hotels across the U.S. use these loans and they represent close to a third of all debt in the hotel industry, according to the American Hotel and Lodging Association. Representatives of the bondholders often charge expensive fees to negotiate with the borrowers. They also have their own real estate portfolios and don’t mind acquiring new ones, so there’s less incentive to negotiate with borrowers compared to banks, which don’t want to be in the real estate business should a loan go bad, experts say."

"'This is the Big Bad Wolf. You have no idea what devastation CMBS loans will have on us,' Gaekwad told Vice President Mike Pence last month during a forum on Florida’s tourism industry in Orlando. 'If you don’t put it in a cage, it will finish us.'"

The Hartford Courant in Connecticut. "The drawings were beautiful and the promises so big and emphatic. The 58-acre former campus of the University of Connecticut in West Hartford would be rebuilt into a high-tech hub with a $400 million investment, transforming life in the region. You probably knew Fintech Village was another grandiose economic development fantasy."

"Ideanomics, the parent company of Fintech Village, decided it would rather manufacture electric vehicles, and it was not going to do that in Connecticut. The West Hartford property is beset with hazardous substances, including PCBs and asbestos. All the players knew that when the project burst into public view in 2018 as a late gasp of the outgoing administration outgoing administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy."

"West Hartford’s dose of reality comes at a perilous time. It’s cheaper for the employer and saves employees the time and expense of commuting. A coronavirus vaccine many not change that. This would be a particularly bad moment for West Hartford to place a hefty wager on developing the site for business, as commercial real estate enters a period with what a real estate broker might call an oversupply of space."

"When reality overtook fantasy on those empty acres where a dream factory would never be built, local officials trotted out a plan for a technology park and solar farm. Replacing one bad idea with two masqueraded as sound public policy until it became clear that no one was interested in building a technology park or a solar farm on the prime site by I-291. Today, a Home Depot distribution center is being built on what was to have been the new home of entertainment magic."

"Economic development is drudgery, not performance art. The bigger the press conference announcing a plan, the higher our eyebrows should rise. Restoring jobs and opportunity in Connecticut will happen one company at a time, starting with someone who has an idea and decides this is the place it can thrive. It requires no elaborate drawings to dupe politicians and distract the public."