by Rebecca Walker — March 23, 2009—Richard D. Purtell, RPA, chairman and chief elected officer of The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International, testified before Congress and the General Services Administration (GSA) on the growing commercial real estate credit crunch, with a specific focus on the challenges of leasing and building during an economic crisis.
Purtell represented BOMA International and the Apartment and Office Building Association (AOBA) of Metropolitan Washington, D.C., before a hearing of the House Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Purtell explained to Chairman Eleanor Holmes Norton and members of the subcommittee that the U.S. property market is facing its worst liquidity challenge since the Great Depression. “With virtually no liquidity, commercial borrowers face a growing challenge of refinancing maturing debt and the threat of rising foreclosures and delinquencies,” said Purtell during the testimony. “We are faced with the dual challenge of developing strategies to stop the downward spiral and restoring confidence in markets.”
Purtell stressed that the time to act is now, emphasizing that it is imperative to enact measures that will enable financial institutions to effectively restructure their balance sheets, to take toxic assets off banks’ book and to start lending again on solidly underwritten transactions.
This is the second time BOMA has been asked to testify before the House Subcommittee on this issue. For more information, or to read the full testimony, see the Web site.
