When it came to commercial real estate, many investors had likely felt that property values had peaked in 2016, that the bull run was ending and the economy was due for a pullback. Those are among the reasons that Jeff Otteau feels overall investment sales in New Jersey fell last year to $6.5 billion, from $8.3 billion in 2016, while activity also slowed in New York City. Yet that trend could be in store for a reversal as a result of the newly amended tax code, which has preserved and added to the benefits given to real estate investors.
A fast start to a busy year
As we’ve been reminded over the last two years, industry leaders have long feared that federal tax reform could spell the end of many of the loopholes enjoyed by developers and investors. It became clear last fall that benefits such as the 1031 exchange would live to see another day, but as we came to learn, that was just the beginning of how the commercial real estate sector would stand to gain under President Trump’s tax overhaul.