by Brianna Crandall — January 24, 2011—Jones Lang LaSalle’s global capital markets experts reported January 19 that a strong fourth quarter brought full-year global commercial real estate (CRE) transaction volumes to $316 billion, which is more than 50 percent higher than 2009 levels, representing a significant recovery in CRE investment activity across all three major regions.
According to JLL’s Global Capital Flows data analysis, after reaching a low of $209 billion for the full year 2009, global direct CRE volumes were bolstered by an active first half of the year in key markets and a general surge in fourth quarter investment activity. Activity in the fourth quarter 2010 activity marks the first time global investment volumes have exceeded $100 billion since the onset of the global financial crisis in 2007, says JLL.
“At the beginning of 2010, we predicted total global volumes to land near US$300 billion, and the fourth quarter surpassed our estimates,” said Arthur de Haast, head of the firm’s International Capital Group. “Barring further sovereign debt crises or financial shocks, the momentum of 2010 is expected to continue over the next 12 months and we predict global volumes for 2011 should increase by 20 to 25 percent.”
