DeBoer: Panel Report Helpful in Lobbying Push

WASHINGTON, DC-A report released earlier this week by a Congressional Oversight Panelestablished to monitor TARP will be a welcome data source as the RealEstate Roundtable continues its multi-action legislative push on theHill and with the Administration, according to CEO Jeff DeBoer.

“The report does an excellent job of connecting the dots between theneed for strong real estate markets, a functioning banking system atthe local level and what all that means to communities and tax bases,” he tells GlobeSt.com.

“We have a serious problem on our hands that stems from the fact there is no meaningful job growth,” Deboer adds. “For real estate, thattranslates into declines in NOI–be it leased real estate orbuildings owned by institutional investors or by small businesses.

“The lack of jobs, and lack of NOI is weakening the assets that arethe collateral against which banks make loans,” he continues.

The report also points out the need for substantial amounts of equitythat need to be invested in real estate. “We’ve been sayingthis is not just a credit crisis but also, in some ways, an equitycrisis,” Deboer relates. “There needs to be a significant amount of equity put into realestate.”

Of course these observations, as well as the technical data in thereport, are known to the commercial real estate community, DeBoersays. “But it articulates this information in a new and fresh way and will be very helpfulserving as a verifying point for policy makers–especiallypolicymakers who might be a little unsure in this area, because it isso complicated.”