November CRE Headlines Worth Watching

Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and commercial real estate is coming off one of its better stretches of headlines in a while.

October saw the Fed’s second rate cut of the year, with markets forecasting a third in December. The 10-year Treasury yield remains well below its early-year highs, and the government shutdown has been resolved. Just as important, many of the country’s leading CRE firms are reporting their strongest quarter in years.

At the same time, the Urban Land Institute’s much-anticipated survey reflects the macro concerns still on investors’ minds. The path to lower interest rates isn’t as smooth as many hoped, tariffs continue to pressure costs, and slowing domestic migration may affect demand.

As we all navigate this mix of conditions, the headlines below offer a quick read on how industry stakeholders are feeling about the months ahead.

This article is not inclusive of all industry news. We encourage all investors to consider a variety of available real estate news channels as they consider opportunities.

Headlines:

Major CRE Firms Expect 2025 Results to Reach Pre-Pandemic Levels

The five largest commercial real estate services firms in the world are tracking record or near-record profits in 2025.

Why It Matters: Post-COVID, commercial real estate faced its steepest downturn since the Great Recession. For years, it was hard to predict when leasing and sales demand would return to pre-pandemic levels. Now, executives at the country’s largest landlords and brokerages are tracking some of their strongest leasing years ever. They say the post-COVID slump is finally in the rearview. Headwinds remain, but this is the clearest sign in a while that demand and transaction activity are resurgent.

Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2026

The Urban Land Institute and PwC publish their annual report. Its findings reflect a desire to do deals despite heightened economic uncertainty.

Why It Matters: This report — now in its 47th year — is one of the clearest indicators of market sentiment among real estate’s movers and shakers. Survey respondents said their appetite to buy, their profit outlooks, and the interest rate cycle have all improved, which are good signs for the sector. But they diverged on how capital markets and macro conditions could shape the road ahead. Some described today’s economic uncertainty as a speed bump and others as a long-term headwind.

Why Global Investment Firm Nuveen Is Betting on This Real Estate Subsector

Nuveen Real Estate says grocery-anchored, open-air strip centers may present an opportunity. Vacancy rates in these spaces were 7.8% at the start of 2016, but came down to 4.4% by the beginning of this year.

Why It Matters: Nuveen’s Global Head of Real Estate Investing believes retail real estate is now facing undersupply, just as mall traffic is on the rise. Grocery-anchored outdoor centers — where vacancy rates have nearly halved over the past decade — often offer attractive cap rates and straightforward sales. For CRE investors, this is a noteworthy signal from one of the world’s leading institutional investors.