Bellingham Commercial Real Estate Blog

Bellingham WA. and Whatcom Co. Real Estate Research Report

Blain Hardy — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:50:00 GMT

The 2009 Whatcom County Real Estate Research Report shows Bellingham Commercial Real Estate Office Space vacancy at 4.37% overall. Retail Space is an overall vacancy of 4.92% and Industrial/Warehouse vacancy at 4.35%. This years report breaks out 26 specific...(read more)

Edgemoor Home Sales

Blain Hardy — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 23:52:00 GMT

The first of the year started off slow with the majority of home sales coming in recent months, this follows a typical selling pattern of homes in Whatcom County. Price reductions were the norm, buyers push hard and gained price concessions from the sellers....(read more)

2 Story For Sale in Cordata

Blain Hardy — Tue, 26 May 2009 22:07:00 GMT

Reserve at Cordata

• 1,536 sq. ft., 2 bath, 3 bdrm 2 story - MLS® $269,000 - Excellant Investment

Cordata, Bellingham - Across the street from the park in the Reserve at Cordata. Celeatial model that includes: fireplace, whole house fan, oak hardwood floor in entry, ceramic tile counters in kitchen and baths, maytag appliances (washer, dryer,refrigerator). Over $10,000 in upgrades. Call 360-714-1080

Property information

Bellingham Washington Business for Sale

Blain Hardy — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 00:27:00 GMT

Now you can find all the Business for Sale listings at www.bhardy.com Just click on For Sale and select Business Opportunities. Be sure to look at our Featured Listing a viable Gas Station / C Store http://www.bhardy.com/Bellingham/Washington/Commercial_Real_Estate/Meridian/Agent/Listing_2243104.html What type of business are you looking for? Hardy & Associates is located at 307 Telegraph Rd. Bellingham Washington and will be happy to help. 360-714-1080

Bellingham, WA Commercial Real Estate Trends

Blain Hardy — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:35:00 GMT

Read the April 2009 Bellingham Real Estate Commercial Investment Quarterly Report at http://www.bhardy.com/Bellingham_Investment_Trends/page_2021633.htmly

Unfortunately, even when the economy and capital markets start to stabilize, commercial real estate fundamentals will continue to suffer for a period of time.

Blaine Airport Site Plan Approved

Blain Hardy — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:11:00 GMT

Blaine City Counsel unanimously approved a General Binding Site Plan for the redevelopment of the Blaine Airport on Monday evening November 10th. The application was applied for by Blaine Gateway LLC and gives some insight as to how the streets will be improved to accommodate future development. If you are looking to do business at the border crossing in Blaine WA the opportunity is now. For more info please call 360-714-1080 or visit our web site at www.bhardy.com

Bellingham Retail Space for Rent

Blain Hardy — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:07:00 GMT

Retail Space available at corner of Cornwall and Chestnut located in the Central Business District of Downtown Bellingham. Space is on street level with a total of 3137sq ft available divisible to 280 sq ft. Nearby parking makes for easy access. Rents start at 12.00 per sq ft per yr. NNN. For more info call 360-714-1080 or visit our web site at www.bhardy.com

Bellingham Office Space

Blain Hardy — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:03:00 GMT

Class A Office Space available at corner of Cornwall and Chestnut located in the Central Business District of Downtown Bellingham. Space is on street level with a total of 5125 sq ft available divisible to 131 sq ft. Nearby parking makes for easy access. Rents start at 12.00 per sq ft per yr. NNN. For more info call 360-714-1080 or visit our web site at www.bhardy.com

Just Released Bellingham Real Estate Report

Blain Hardy — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 02:40:00 GMT

Market indicators provided in the 2008 edition of the Whatcom County Real Estate Research Report show Bellingham Commercial Real Estate has made some significant changes in the past year. Industrial space now has a 10.26% vacancy rate compared to 3.05% in 07. Office Space vacancy has also increased form 6.24% in 07 to 8.49% in 08. Retail Space has continued to be the hot spot at 6.34% verses 7.77% in 07 a decrease of 1.43% in vacancy. How has the change in demand effected your business? Access the full report by pressing the Bellingham Commercial Real Estate trends button located on the home page of www.BellinghamSpaceForLease.com

2.27 Acres Light Industrial in Ferndale WA.

Blain Hardy — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 23:01:00 GMT

3,528 sq. ft. steel building with loading dock. 1232 sq ft home or office single story. Now $500,000 - . See photos and full details at www.bhardy.com

Property information

Blaine Commercial Real Estate for Sale

Blain Hardy — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 15:09:00 GMT

The Blaine Municipal Airport located at the border crossing on I-5 will be redeveloped for commercial use. North of Boblett St. will offer commercial/mixed use lots for sale and south of Boblett St will offer light Industrial/manufacturing lots for sale. The lots are being offered by Hardy & Associates Real Estate and you can get the details at their web site: www.bhardy.com click on Featured Listings. Please tell us what type of development you would like to see on this site.

Real Estate For Sale in Blaine

Blain Hardy — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 21:44:00 GMT

Excellent Location

• commercial "Light Ind./Manufacturing" - MLS® $1 - Build to Suit - Price TBD

Blaine, Whatcom County - Two blocks from the truck border crossing I-5 in Blaine. In industrial area with utilities in the street. Property has very slight slope and preliminary investigations show development could proceed in a timely manner.

Property information

Blaine Airport to be Redeveloped

Blain Hardy — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 04:53:00 GMT

City counsel accepted an offer from Gateway LLC on June 2, 2008 to purchase the airport site on or before December 31, 2008. The city has also rezoned the property for commercial/mixed use and light industrial/manufacturing south of Boblett St. The question is what type of development would you like to see there?

Real estate industry gets extra perk in stimulus act

Blain Hardy — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 20:16:00 GMT

By Melissa Castro

updated 5:00 p.m. PT, Sun., March. 23, 2008

Buried deep in the new Economic Stimulus Act lies a lucrative perk for landlords and commercial tenants.

In an effort to revive the flagging real estate industry, Congress increased the amount of construction costs that can be written off in the first year for improvements to commercial or residential rental property.

Since 2006, only 2.5 percent of the costs of those improvements could be written off in the first year. The remainder had to be spread out over 39 years.

The new "bonus depreciation" schedule provides much quicker relief, bringing back the most generous depreciation rules that were in place after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

With the change, landlords and commercial tenants can now write off 50 percent of the cost for "qualified leasehold improvements" in the first year alone, as long as the improvements are completed by the end of this year, said Dwayne Holt, a partner at Vienna-based accounting firm Beers & Cutler PLLC. The rest is written off in declining increments over just 15 years.

"That's the big home run for the real estate industry with this stimulus act," Holt said. "If you put $3 million of leasehold improvements into service in 2008, you get to deduct over $1.5 million in the first year."

If you wait until 2009 to make the improvements, you will be able to deduct just $50,000, he said.

Since the new provisions are similar to the bonus depreciation incentives Congress provided in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, this type of economic prod does seem to have a track record of success.

However, the real estate boom that followed the 2001 package can't be tied to the tax package alone, in part because those incentives were increased and extended through 2005, experts say.

"Unfortunately, real estate cycles move very slowly, and there is usually a significant lag between the adoption of new incentives and their manifestation in the marketplace," said David Orr, the president of Falls Church-based development company Orr Partners.

Tax policy, of course, is not the only factor affecting the marketplace.

"The local construction industry has seen a significant increase in growth since 9/11," said Steven Shapiro, an adjunct real estate development professor at the University of Maryland. But "the increase is probably not attributable to tax policy but [to] the incredible expansion in the defense industry and the trickle down to all sectors of our regional economy."

Even so, in a market that demands Class A space or better, the tax benefit provides an opportunity to meet that demand, according to construction industry insiders.

"It provides another reason to reinvest in properties that may be B or C space," said Dennis Cotter, senior executive vice president at James G. Davis Construction Corp.

The package also provides a boost for owners that want to implement environmentally friendly improvements, he said.

Architects, on the other hand, say they did not see any significant jump in business after the Sept. 11 stimulus package, and they don't expect to see one now.

"Maybe if there are enough small gains and lots of companies spending more money, those will create more work for architects and designers," said Thomas Campbell of Burt Hill's D.C. office. "I don't see it happening to any great extent though."

Because of the tight time frame for companies to claim the benefits, the provisions might not influence a tenant's decision to build or move, said Rusty Meadows, D.C. principal at Chicago-based Perkins and Will Architects Inc. "What these provisions will likely influence, however, is how much money they may spend on their new project or relocation."

For the retail and restaurant industry, however, the tax package may offer the perfect recipe.

"It's great for restaurants because their interior build-out is so expensive," said Geoff Mackler, a principal broker at Bethesda-based H&R Retail. "To be able to offset some of their costs in the first year is a tremendous advantage. If they can get beyond the first year, they have a much better chance of succeeding."

For office building owners -- particularly those in the emerging markets and more far-flung suburbs -- the package could woo tenants into empty buildings, said James Martinko, managing principal at Bethesda-based Reznick Group, an accounting and tax consulting business.

"Inside the Beltway the market is very strong and really needs few incentives to continue to flourish," Martinko said. "Outside the Beltway, the stimulus could create the needed incentives to fill empty commercial space and to speed up decisions for tenants looking for space."

While the potential benefits will have to be calculated on an individual basis, "the bigger question, and one for the policymakers, is whether it is worth the cost," Shapiro said.

"I'm usually skeptical of using the tax code for short-term economic stimulus," he said. "At the margin, it might help a tenant that is otherwise considering such an expenditure, but I doubt that it influences major decisions."

National Commercial Real Estate News

Blain Hardy — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 16:17:00 GMT

March 13, 2008 - March 19, 2008
Provided by Commercial Real Estate Direct

Investors See Cap Rates Heading Upward
Institutional investors sense that capitalization rates have hit bottom for office and industrial property, according to the PWC Korpacz Real Estate Investor Survey. The investors surveyed fear that rising unemployment is forcing office landlords to shift rental terms in favor of tenants to maintain occupancy. The report, however, is bullish on the industrial sector, noting that high-tech industry will fuel demand for development space and warehouse market conditions remain favorable in coastal markets.