LAKEWOOD RANCH — Donors cheered the results of their monetary gifts Wednesday as they toured a new $11.2 million facility at the Lakewood Ranch campus of State College of Florida.

It was a sneak preview and benefactor recognition ceremony at the college’s new Medical Technology and Simulation Center, SCF’s first certified “green,” environmentally-friendly building.

The 42,000-square-foot facility will function as a clinical setting for students in a simulated hospital environment, officials said. Its classrooms and laboratories will house those studying nursing, other health professions, education and energy technology management, they said.

SARA KENNEDY/skennedy@bradenton.com Donor Al Goldstein, left, and Susan Valentin, middle, look at a dummy “patient” named Standard Granny as SCF Assistant Professor Debra Marr, right, explains the newest technology at SCF’s new Medical Technology and Simulation Center.

Asked why he had donated money to the project, David Band, a Sarasota attorney, replied, “Because education is the heart and soul of the economy. It’s the best thing anybody can support.”

Another donor addressed a standing-room-only crowd of more than 100 that had gathered in one wing to celebrate the building’s completion.

“I can’t think of an institution that gives the local populace and the local economy the lift that this one does,” said Rex Jensen, president and chief executive officer for Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, developer of Lakewood Ranch and donor of the land upon which the glistening new building rests.

Representing State College of Florida Foundation Inc., which hosted the event, was Peg Lowery, who called the facility a “wonderful community jewel.”

Site work on the building began in 2008, its ground breaking ceremony took place in February 2009, and SCF’s grand opening is slated for Friday, officials said.

Fall classes are slated to begin Monday.

“It’s spectacular,” was the assessment of Al Goldstein as he stood in a room with his name written above it. “It’s always good to give money away, hopefully it does some good.”

Sara Kennedy, Herald reporter, can be reached at (941) 745-7031.

via Donors cheer new building at SCF’s Lakewood Ranch campus – Local – BradentonHerald.com.

The Florida retail real estate market is showing signs of stability for the first time in years, according to a report by Crossman and Company for the International Council of Shopping Centers.

“In nearly every market of the state we have seen the freefall of rents and occupancy leveling off, indicating we may have found the bottom of the market, though significant challenges still remain for owners and retailers alike,” Justin Greider, primary author of the report, said in a company statement.

The report notes that rental rates for the entire state average $16.60 per square foot for mid-year 2010, down nearly 15 percent from the peak in the first quarter of 2008. Occupancy has leveled off at just over 89 percent, a decrease of about 6 percent from its peak in 2006.

The Tampa Bay market’s average rental rate is $14.51 per square foot, down 2.8 percent since the end of 2009, and 12.5 percent from their peak in early 2008. Average occupancy is 88.8 percent, remaining flat from six months ago.

“The Tampa market is very fragmented right now,” Greider said. “The infill market locations in Pinellas and Hillsborough County have been feeling strong signs of recovery all year, while the outlying markets may still have another six to 12 months before they see real turn-around in the fundamentals.”

The outlook for the next year is cautiously optimistic.

“People throughout the state are very positive, but the recovery is going to be long and slow, and there is still a lot of over-valued product that has to work its way through the system,” Greider said.

The report will be presented Aug. 23 at 1 p.m. during ICSC’s Florida Conference at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee.

Crossman & Company, one of the largest third-party retail leasing and management firms in the Southeast, has produced the report for ICSC for the past 15 years.

via Crossman report: Florida retail market settles down – Tampa Bay Business Journal.

The purchase application index has been highlighted as a particularly important data series as it very broadly captures the demand side of residential real estate for both new and existing home purchases.

The latest data is showing that the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage increased 3 basis points since the last week to 4.60% while the purchase application volume decreased 3.4% and the refinance application volume jumped 17.1% over the same period.

It’s important to note that with the final expiration of the governments massive housing tax credit subsidy, home purchase activity has been trending down precipitously despite falling interest rates.

The purchase application volume remains near the lowest level seen in well over a decade.

The following chart shows how the principle and interest cost and estimated annual income required to cover the PITI (using the 29% “rule of thumb”) on a $400,000 loan has changed since November 2006.

Mortgage Rates Edge Up on Refinance Applications — Seeking Alpha.

Read more: http://www.bradenton.com/2010/08/17/2509918/cut-the-red-tape-forum-set-for.html#ixzz0wyLjuGDG

From the CID meeting this morning, I polled the roughly 50-60 members in attendance for how the market was changing and what deals were getting done at what rates. Here is what the group had to say.

1. Lease deals are in the 2 – 3,000 SF range but rates are hardly consistent
2. Downtown Sarasota average deal rate was $16PSF exclusive of janitorial & electric
3. South County rates were closer to $12 gross exclusive of janitorial & electric
4. Overall activity level was flat to improving
5. Prices will continue to be under pressure with overall stabilization

A glance at the retail fundamentals in Florida reveals a dramatically different retail scene from market to market.

What the different markets in the state have in common is that a low amount of new construction will ease pressure on rents everywhere. The lack of new supply will help keep vacancies under control and help keep rents from falling further. In fact, in Miami, rents have actually increased slightly in 2010.

The other commonality in Florida’s markets is the question of unemployment. Throughout the state, unemployment rates are hovering at or above 10 percent. That is casting a pall over the retail picture in many markets.

Still, while things are not improving anywhere, there are signs that markets have at least bottomed out and have either begun to recover or are poised to improve in the near future.

Tampa
Tampa fared the worst in the second quarter posting negative absorption of 296,000 square feet because of closings by major retailers. Small shop leasing helped, however, posting positive absorption of 26,000 square feet.

Despite the net absorption, the vacancy rate in Tampa stands at a relatively low 7.7 percent. Average asking rents fell 3.2 percent to $14.67 per square foot from the first quarter.

According to CBRE’s report:

Despite the negative absorption, retailers remain cautiously optimistic that the worst is behind them as they look to resume expanding albeit at a slower pace.
…
Retail professionals are confident we are approaching bottom, although more downward pressure on effective rents and space consolidation is still being felt across Tampa Bay.

Tampa

By property type, Tampa’s 10 regional malls are the healthiest properties. The vacancy rate at those properties stands at 1.5 percent with asking rents at $28.00 per square foot. The vacancy rate at freestanding retail spaces is 3.7 percent with rents at $5.23 per square foot. The market’s 18 power centers also have high occupancies with the vacancy rate at 5.7 percent and rents at $19.31 per square foot. The 232 neighborhood centers have a vacancy rate of 9.7 percent and average rents of $15.21 per square foot. Finally, the 156 community centers in the Tampa region have the highest vacancy rate–at 11.2 percent–and average rents of $14.82 per square foot.

There are no new retail centers under construction in the Tampa market and no new projects were completed in the second quarter.

A Glimpse At Florida’s Retail Climate | TrafficCourt.

As expected, property sales in the Sarasota real estate market in July 2010 slowed to pre-tax credit numbers following the expiration of the federal $8,000 homebuyer incentive.

Property sales in July 2010 stood at 525 total sales, declining 47.8 percent from the June 2010 figure of 776 sales. The sales figure was much closer to the 506 sales in January 2010 and the 528 sales in February 2010, when the homebuyer credit wasn’t a factor in the market.

In July, 374 single family homes were sold, compared to 576 single family homes sold in June 2010.  The median price also trended lower at $155,000, compared to June’s figure of $175,000.  The figure was more in line with the 12-month rolling median sale price of $162,000.

Condo sales in July stood at 151, a drop from last month’s figure of 200.  The median price of condos also fell in July to $127,000, which again primarily reflected distressed property sales.  Non-distressed condo sales saw a median price of $227,500, while for distressed properties, the median sale price was $73,000 for bank-owned condos and $121,700 for condos involved in short sales.

For the last 12 months combined, the median sale price for single family homes was $162,000. For condos, the median price over the last 12 months was $175,000.

Pending sales also dropped to 653 – slower than the period during which homebuyers were eligible for tax credits.  The March and April pending sales figures both topped 1,000 and reflected a last minute rush to beat the federal homebuyer tax credit deadline.

“We are seeing what was predicted – a slower period following the expiration of the tax credits and the rush of buyers to the closing table,” said 2010 SAR President Erick Shumway. “There logically had to come a time when sales would taper off from the highs we hadn’t experienced in almost five years. We are not immune to the economic forces which continue to limit our nation’s recovery – high unemployment, lower consumer demand, and other factors. But we remain confident that better days are ahead.”

The level of sales of distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales) rose in July 2010 to 48.7 percent of the overall market, from 44.6 percent in June 2010. The distressed market also topped 48 percent in late 2009.

The property inventory level remained fairly consistent, rising slightly above the 6,000 level in July 2010 at 6,045, still one of the lowest monthly levels since late summer of 2005.

The months of inventory for single family homes in July 2010 rose to 10.4 months from 6.6 months in June. This figure represents the number of months it would take to sell all available homes at the current pace. For condos, the figure rose to 14.4 months from 10.6 months, still lower than last July’s figure of 16.9 months. Once the market reaches the 6 month level it is considered to be in equilibrium between a buyers and sellers market.

Click HERE for the complete PDF version of the press release, along with two pages of statistical charts.