#capstack

TenantSee Weekly: What Could Go Right?

TenantSee Weekly:  What Could Go Right?

Mass psychology is literally contagious (that’s how it becomes “mass”).  This is especially true in times of change, when a significant event has precipitated such change (e.g., the pandemic).  These events can be positive or negative.  In our current state, the catalyst was negative, and, in many ways, has resulted in a decidedly negative outlook.  When things turn negative, there will always be market casualties (just as a rising tide lifts all boats in the positive context).  For example, the impact to investors in the domestic office sector has been mostly negative.  As change unfolds, it can have knock-on impacts that weren’t necessarily anticipated.  For example, the demise of urban downtowns due to shifts in daily worker population.  Collective sentiment tends to aggregate around a view and stay there until some brave souls dare to take the contrarian view.  As these contrarians see success, it spurs others to jump on board and the collective sentiment begins to shift, once again, in the other direction.

TenantSee Weekly: Cap Stack Woes

TenantSee Weekly: Cap Stack Woes

Recently, we have written about the importance of understanding the landlord’s “cap stack” (capital stack, meaning equity and debt).  Understanding the cap stack that guides a landlord's decisions is more than just a business detail — it's an integral part of the current real estate landscape. Today, there is a massive chasm between what many owners can afford to do in the current market and what they need to make a deal accretive or even break-even, given the capital stack realities of the underlying market.  In short, many owners simply cannot afford to transact at market. Why? Two primary reasons: