Grubb & Ellis Predicts a Challenging 2009 for Commercial Real Estate as Economy Weathers Recession (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
Grubb & Ellis Company , a leading real estate services and investment firm, today released its 2009 Global Real Estate Forecast, which indicates that 2009 will be a challenging year for commercial real estate with the economy starting the year 13 months into what may become the longest recession since the 1930s.

U.S. Private Equity Firms Seek Bargains in Japanese REIT Market (Commercial Property News)
Japanese REITs, which have lost more than 50 percent of their value on the Tokyo Stock Exchange since their peak last year, are increasingly attracting the attention of U.S.-based private equity firms like Oaktree Capital Management, which has launched the first tender offer for a REIT in Japan.

Planners Look to Pax River as Guide Ahead of Military Base Expansions (Washington Post)
Where once there were trees and fields there stand office buildings adorned with the names of giant military contractors: Northrup Grumman, Sikorsky, Raytheon and more. The road leading to the Patuxent River Naval Air Station has widened from two lanes to six and become lined for miles with shopping...

More empty office space bodes poorly for banks (Pioneer Press)
Vacancy rates in office buildings exceed 10 percent in virtually every major city in the country and are rising rapidly, a sign of economic distress that could lead to yet another wave of problems for troubled lenders.

Real Estate (Mondaq)
Many public companies, including REITs, are facing unprecedented liquidity and capital resource constraints. The continuing market turmoil has resulted in substantially increased market volatility, which in turn has nearly shut down traditional methods of raising capital.

Tower REIT revalues 3 properties (Business Times (Malaysia))
TOWER Real Estate Investment Trust has revalued three properties under its stable namely Menara HLA, HP Towers and Menara ING. The revaluation exercise conducted by GLM REIT Management Sdn Bhd, manager of Tower REIT, was to ascertain the current market values of the three buildings.

ProLogis to Sell China Operations, Interest in Japan Funds to GIC for $1.3B (Commercial Property News)
Looking for ways to quickly cut debt and strengthen its balance sheet, industrial REIT giant ProLogis said it was selling its China operations and a 20 percent interest in its Japan property funds to GIC Real Estate for $1.3 billion.