The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics provides a positive work outlook for real estate appraisers. Is 2024 the lowest point in the current commercial real estate market cycle? Based on recent activity, that could be the case. The global real estate valuation continued to fall during the second quarter of 2024, down 6.3% compared to the previous year, but the rate of decline is slowing down from the 7.7% recorded two quarters earlier, 19 Global real estate transaction activity remains weak, 31% less than in the year-on-year 20 of June21, although there is evidence that buyers and sellers are increasingly aligning themselves with price estimates after two years of discontinuity, 22 In addition, the above-mentioned expectations of reduction of interest rates and inflation mitigation around the world could increase confirmation of the view that the next 12 to 18 months could be less tumultuous for real estate activity than in the recent past. The real estate appraisal industry in the United States is unlikely to be significantly affected by import tariffs, as imports represent a low proportion of revenues of the industry.
For some members of the commercial real estate sector, the shift to potential rate cuts has boosted confidence in what's left of 2024 and 2025.8 That said, a single rate cut alone is not expected to immediately alleviate persistent concerns about the risk of refinancing maturing loans or making equity and debt for acquisitions suddenly cheaper or easier to obtain. The benefits of adopting AI in commercial real estate are extensive, and automation can make real estate decision-making processes more efficient and agile. The Deloitte Financial Services Center conducted a survey of more than 880 manager-level executives (chief executives, financial officers and chief operating officers) and their direct reports at major investment firms and commercial real estate owners. Christopher Walker, “Impact investing gains momentum among real estate investors”, Impact Investor, January 2015, p.
The use of AI could become an accelerator for real estate companies, freeing up employee time to work on value-added projects instead of onerous tasks. Throughout his career, he has worked with owners, developers, sponsors, administrators and public and private lenders in nearly every sector of the real estate and hospitality industry. Responses to this year's survey also reflect a short-term change in confidence in the commercial real estate sector in 2025. The widespread adoption of AI could be just the catalyst the industry needs to revolutionize the real estate technology landscape. On the contrary, real estate companies that are more advanced on their path to AI, whether in the initial phase of implementation or in full production, are prioritizing financial planning and analysis (43%), risk management and internal auditing (37%) and real estate operations (35%), over other areas such as accounting and reporting.
Matthew Toma, “The European real estate maturity wall is a challenge that can be addressed with legal funding,” Burford Capital, December. The survey collected the opinions of more than 880 global chief executives and their direct reports in major property owner and investor organizations in 13 countries (see Methodology). Past leadership positions include Deloitte's national real estate leader, Midland real estate leader, and Chicago office auditing leader. Public organizations include real estate investment trusts (REITs) and real estate companies.
