Why Lawmakers Are Seeking Greater Transparency on Foreign Landlords

________MAIN 219055646_640074222852209_7797865356418999834_o3

 

“You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take, and if you think it’s expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur “ 

ARE YOU READY TO SELL OR PURCHASE YOUR LAND OR COMMERCIAL BUILDING IN PHOENIX, SCOTTSDALE, MARICOPA COUNTY AND PINAL COUNTY, ARIZONA, PLEASE CALL ME.      

 

Donna Mitchell | Jul 13, 2017

Lawmakers want to increase due diligence on real estate transactions executed by foreign owners.

Commercial real estate in the U.S. has always been—and likely will always be—open to foreign investors. In some cases, however, the federal government believes foreign ownership’s details are not transparent enough, at least when foreign entities end up owning buildings where federal agencies conduct high-security affairs and handle sensitive information.

On May 16, three ranking members of the Senate Finance, Homeland Security, Government Affairs and Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs committees raised concerns about how the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) reviews pending real estate transactions. In a joint letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) asked the agency to review the CFIUS approach, citing growing questions about how national security could be impacted by certain real estate transactions.

On the same day that the senators sent the letter, Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), introduced legislation requiring that foreign property owners reveal beneficial ownership whenever a federal agency leases high-security space from a private landlord for classified operations or to store sensitive data. In wording that fully expressed Lynch’s concerns, the bill is called the “Secure Government Buildings from Espionage Act of 2017.”

The moves come as news feeds bring new revelations—almost on a daily basis—of large-scale cyber attacks and investigations unfold into national elections compromised by outside forces.

Concerns have also been raised about foreign investors potentially using profits from U.S. real estate investment to fund terrorist organizations and criminal activities. In mid-June, the United Arab Emirates ambassador to Washington Yousef Al Otaiba accused the government of Qatar of using money brought in by the Qatar Investment Authority to support Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood and groups with links to al Qaeda. In the first quarter of 2017, Qatar invested in 16 properties in the U.S., for a total of $1.9 billion, according to Real Capital Analytics (RCA), a New York City-based research firm. The country ranked 11th out of 25 on the list of top foreign buyers of U.S. commercial real estate, and this has been a slow quarter as Qatar’s acquisition volume was down 65 percent year-over-year.

Now lawmakers want to increase due diligence on real estate transactions executed by foreign owners.

The increased scrutiny comes on the heels of a strong year for foreign investment in 2016, when the office sector attracted a high volume of offshore capital, according to research from real estate services firm JLL. In 2016, foreign office investment exceeded $20 billion and accounted for 16 percent of overall acquisition activity for the second consecutive year, according to JLL’s “Office Investment Outlook,” for the fourth quarter of 2016, the most recent available.

“With the increase of foreign investments it is a question of … the transparency of the owners,” says Anne Salladin, a special counsel at Strook & Stroock & Lavan, an international law firm based in New York City. “It is just making sure the government has the correct information.”

The question is: could the closer scrutiny slow down an active part of the market?

Federal agencies appear to have reason for concern. In a letter of support for the Secure Government Buildings Act, directors for the FACT Coalition noted that at least 20 office spaces and facilities leased by the Government Services Administration had foreign owners, citing a GAO analysis published in January.

Most of the foreign landlords on the GAO list are based in countries that are strong allies of the U.S., including Germany, the United Kingdom and Israel. For instance, Winnipeg, Canada-based Artis REIT leases 210,202 sq. ft. of space to the Federal Bureau of Investigations in a building in Phoenix. Also, Korea Investment Holdings leases 862,292 sq. ft. of space in a building on Market Street in Philadelphia to the Internal Revenue Service, the Inspector General for Tax Administration and the Department of Homeland Security. The company is based in South Korea.

So where is the cause for concern? The GAO analysis also notes that China-based Gaw Capital leases about 159,155 sq. ft. of space in a Seattle building to the Social Security Administration and the GAO itself.

China’s representation on the foreign landlords list was small, and in most cases the properties were jointly owned, according to the GAO’s analysis. But the Asian giant continues to be a major buyer of U.S. properties. In the first quarter alone, China invested in 515 U.S. properties, spending a total of $16.5 billion, according to the RCA—a 10 percent increase compared to the same period in 2016. It was the number one source of foreign capital flowing into U.S. commercial assets.

Middle Eastern countries, including Israel, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, jointly spent $7.5 billion on U.S. properties in the first quarter, with Saudi Arabia raising its investment volume by 2.5 percent year-over-year, to $1.8 billion, and Kuwait by 1.4 percent, to 1.0 billion.

Just as the profile of foreign buyers is shifting, so are ideas of what constitutes national security.

“It used to be about defense; then it was telecommunications,” says Chris Griner, a partner at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan, who had also worked in the office of general counsel for the Department of Defense. “Now it is critical infrastructure, and it could be banking, finance or medical. There are a whole bunch of things on top of that. There is no single definition of what is national security.”

Griner also co-authored a note on lawmakers’ efforts to increase scrutiny of commercial real estate transactions involving foreign owners.

It is unclear how much momentum is behind Lynch’s sponsored bill. Griner, however, is confident that increased transparency doesn’t necessarily bode ill for the sector.

“The U.S. is a great economy to invest in for real estate,” he said. “We see nothing that will slow things down.”

SEE IT ALL: http://www.nreionline.com/investment/why-lawmakers-are-seeking-greater-transparency-foreign-landlords

 

“You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take, and if you think it’s expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur “ 

ARE YOU READY TO SELL OR PURCHASE YOUR LAND OR COMMERCIAL BUILDING IN PHOENIX, SCOTTSDALE, MARICOPA COUNTY AND PINAL COUNTY, ARIZONA, PLEASE CALL ME.      

 

 

THE COMMERCIAL EVENT OF THE SUMMER-  CLICK HERE FOR EVENT DETAILS,

 

FROM ME:

Phoenix Commercial Real Estate and Investment Real Estate: Investors and Owner / Users need to really know the market today before making a move in owner user Commercial Properties, Investment Properties and land in Phoenix / Maricopa County, Pinal County / Arizona, as the market has a lot of moving parts today. What is going on socio-economically, what is going on demographically, what is going on with location, with competing businesses, with public policy in general — all of these things affect the quality of selling or purchasing your Commercial Properties, Commercial Investment Properties and Commercial and large tracts of Residential Land  Therefore, you need a broker, a CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member) who is a recognized expert in the commercial and investment real estate industry and who understands Commercial Properties and Investment Properties. I am marketing my listings on Costar, Loop-net CCIM, Kasten Long Commercial Group.  I also sold  hundreds millions of dollars’ worth of  Investment Properties / Owner User Properties in Retail, Office Industrial, Multi-family and Land in Arizona and therefore I am working with  brokers, Investors and Developers. I am also a CCIM and through this origination ( www.ccim.com ) I have access to marketing not only in the United States, but also internationalClick here to find out what is a   CCIM:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CCIM 

ARE YOU READY TO SELL OR PURCHASE YOUR LAND OR COMMERCIAL BUILDING IN PHOENIX, SCOTTSDALE, MARICOPA COUNTY AND PINAL COUNTY, ARIZONA, PLEASE CALL ME.

Please call or text me on my cell:  520-975-5207 or send me an e-mail walterunger@ccim.net 

______THE HABOOB

 

 KASTEN LONG SALES VOLUME 1000+ APARTMENT SALES; $1+ BILLION / METRO PHOENIX AZ –

_______APARTMENT-SALES-1-BIL

 

WEEKLY LAND CLOSING UPDATE / THROUGH July 7, 2017 / Phoenix Arizona Metro, Maricopa County, Pinal County.

 

WEEKLY LAND CLOSING UPDATE / THROUGH June 30, 2017 / Phoenix Arizona Metro, Maricopa County, Pinal County.

 

WEEKLY LAND CLOSING UPDATE / THROUGH June 23, 2017 / Phoenix Arizona Metro, Maricopa County, Pinal County.

 

WEEKLY APARTMENT CLOSING UPDATE THROUGH  June 23 / 2017 /  Phoenix Arizona

Metro

 

How to Capitalize on Hot Phoenix Apartment Market

 

WHY PHOENIX? AMAZING!!!  POPULATION IN 1950 – 350 K PEOPLE; “NOW 5 MIL”. – “5TH. BIGGEST CITY IN USA”

 

ARIZONA FACTS – YEAR 1848 TO 2013

PHOENIX TOPS US IN POPULATION GROWTH (MORE THAN LA, NYC) AND WHY THAT’S GOOD FOR THE ECONOMY, BUSINESS

DOT – LOOP 202 / SOUTH MOUNTAIN FREEWAY / PHOENIX AZ – UNDER CONSTRUCTION

VIEW ALL OF WALTERS LISTINGS

What is a CCIM.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW MY WEBSITE

 

DOWN TOWN PHOENIX IS HOT – MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING ANALYSIS  MAY 17-2017

  • DEMOGRAPHIC FACTS ABOUT MARICOPA COUNTY:
  • The average age of the population is 34 years old.
  • The health cost index score in this area is 102.1. (100 = national average)
  • Here are some of the distributions of commute times for the area: <15 min (22.7%), 15-29 min (36.8%), 30-44 min (25.1%), 45-59 min (8.6%), >60 min (6.8%).

 

PHOENIX PROJECTED AS NUMBER ONE US HOUSING MARKET FOR 2017

LIST OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS IN PINAL COUNTY, REVISED 2-14-17

Reasons to Consider me for Commercial Referrals – I have the Knowledge and Experience                                                                                                                         

Click here to View My Listings and Profile

Click here to find out what is a CCIM:

Click here to view my website:

Click her to join my mailing list :      

Walter Unger CCIM –  walterunger@ccim.net   – 1-520-975-5207  –  http://walter-unger.com

2016 Official Arizona Visitors Guide

Visit Arizona

Why Phoenix?  This is a very interesting article, you should read it, amazing, there were only 350 K people living in Phoenix in 1950

Timeline of Phoenix, Arizona history

Phoenix, Arizona

Facts of Arizona – year 1848 to 2013

Feel free to contact Walter regarding any of these stories, the current market, distressed commercial real estate opportunities and needs, your property or your Investment Needs for Comercial Properties in Phoenix, Tucson, Arizona.

walterunger@ccim.net

1-520-975-5207

Check out my professional profile and connect with me on LinkedIn.

Follow me on Facebook:

Follow me on Twitter:

Follow Me on Google+

 Kasten Long Commercial Group tracks all advertised apartment communities, including those advertised by other brokerages.  The interactive map  shows the location of each community (10+ units) and each location is color coded by the size (number of total units). 

 Walter Unger CCIM, CCSS, CCLS

I am a successful Commercial / Investment Real Estate Broker in Arizona now for 20 years.  If you have any questions about Commercial / Investment Properties in Phoenix or Commercial /  Investment Properties in Arizona,  I will gladly sit down with you and share my expertise and my professional opinion with you. I am also in this to make money therefore it will be a win-win situation for all of us. 

Please reply by e-mail walterunger@ccim.net or call me on my cell 520-975-5207

www.Walter-Unger.com

Walter Unger CCIM

Senior Associate Broker

Kasten Long Commercial Group

5110 N 40th Street, Suite 110

Phoenix , AZ 85018

Direct:    520-975-5207

Fax:       602-865-7461

walterunger@ccim.net

www.Walter-Unger.com

What is a CCIM.

View My Listings and Profile

Are you ready to sell or purchase your Land or Commercial Building in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Maricopa County and Pinal County, Arizona, please call me.

Join My Mailing List

What is a CCIM?

Reasons to Consider me for Commercial Referrals

Delivering the New Standard of Excellence in Commercial Real Estate 

  •  
  • Commercial Real Estate Scottsdale
  • Commercial Real Estate Phoenix
  • Commercial Real Estate Arizona
  • Commercial Investment Properties Phoenix
  • Commercial Investment Properties Scottsdale
  • Commercial Investment Properties Arizona
  • Land Specialist Arizona
  • Arizona Land Specialist
  • Land Specialist Phoenix
  • Phoenix Land Specialist
  • Land For Sale Phoenix
  • Land for sale Arizona
  • Commercial Properties For Sale Phoenix
  • Commercial Real Estate Sales Phoenix
  • Commercial Properties Phoenix
  • Commercial Properties Arizona
  • Commercial Land Specialist Phoenix
  • Commercial Land Phoenix
  • Multifamily land Phoenix
  • Retail Land Phoenix
  • Industrial Land Phoenix
  • Land Commercial Phoenix
  • Land Retail Phoenix
  • Land Industrial Phoenix
  • Land Multifamily Phoenix
  • Industrial Land for sale Phoenix
  • Land Industrial
  • P
  • Investment Real Estate

 

Disclaimer of Liability

The information in this blog-newsletter is for general guidance only, and does not constitute the provision of legal advice, tax advice, accounting services, investment advice, or professional consulting of any kind. The information provided herein should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional tax, accounting, legal, or other competent advisers. Before making any decision or taking any action, you should consult a professional adviser who has been provided with all pertinent facts relevant to your particular situation. Tax articles in this e-newsletter are not intended to be used, and cannot be used by any taxpayer, for the purpose of avoiding accuracy-related penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer. The information is provided “as is,” with no assurance or guarantee of completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of the information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose.