Cassidy Turley to Report on Retail Market at ICSC RECon 2011 Conference

WASHINGTON, May 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- According to new U.S. retail market research from Cassidy Turley, a leading commercial real estate services provider in the U.S., the retail sector is seeing positive momentum, unlike the last three years, but it will be years before the recovery is fully complete.  Specific findings from Cassidy Turley's U.S. Retail Report and May 2011 Insights: Retail Outlook will be available at Cassidy Turley's booth (#C187 L St) in the Central Hall at the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) RECon 2011 conference, May 22-25, at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

"The Cassidy Turley U.S. Retail Report indicates that net demand for retail space has been trending up since July of 2010, and vacancy has stabilized," said Kevin Thorpe, Chief Economist, Cassidy Turley. "The retail fundamentals are slowly strengthening, but the recovery is far from even across all product types and all markets.  It very much remains a story of haves and have-nots."

Following are some key insights from Cassidy Turley's 2011 U.S. Retail Report:

• Unemployment is highly correlated with the retail sector.  Markets with unemployment lower than the U.S. average are the ones experiencing the strongest rebound in retail demand.

• Housing will slow the recovery in retail. Home values continue to fall in most markets, creating a negative wealth effect. Until home prices stabilize, consumer spending will remain capped at below-potential levels.

• Look for dollar store retailers that cater to a down market to expand. Between all the major chains, an estimated 1,800 new stores are scheduled to open in the U.S. over the next two years.

• Credit card account originations are on the rise again and delinquency rates are declining -- giving consumers additional buying power. (source: Equifax)

• Look for hybrid grocery store expansions to continue in 2011. Even some drugs stores are looking at adding a food component to be more competitive in the one-stop shop arena.

Each month, Cassidy Turley's economists and analysts analyze primary and secondary macroeconomic and real estate industry data at the local and national levels to provide forecasts, demand/supply fundamentals, development cycle analyses of key macroeconomic and market-specific variables on more than 80 U.S. metropolitan areas, encompassing more than 17.4 billion square feet of commercial real estate inventory.  This research provides insight and perspective on national and marketplace trends facing major U.S. industries and commercial real estate to provide owners and investors with useful information to assess their investments and real estate strategy.  Cassidy Turley also publishes crucial statistics of investment sales and leasing for office, industrial, retail and multi-family markets -- key benchmarks for measuring the health of the commercial real estate (CRE) industry, as well as white papers on legislative issues and other topics that impact the CRE industry and Cassidy Turley clients.

About Cassidy Turley

Cassidy Turley is a leading commercial real estate services provider with 3,000 professionals in 60 offices nationwide. The company represents a wide range of clients -- from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, from local non-profits to major institutions. The firm completed transactions valued at $17 billion in 2010, manages 430 million square feet on behalf of private, institutional and corporate clients and supports over 25,000 domestic corporate services locations. Cassidy Turley serves owners, investors and occupiers with a full spectrum of integrated commercial real estate services -- including capital markets, tenant representation, corporate services, project leasing, property management, project and development services, and research and consulting. In 2010, the firm enhanced its global service delivery outside of North America through its partnership with GVA. Please visit www.cassidyturley.com for more information about Cassidy Turley.

About RECon

RECon is the global convention for the shopping center industry. It provides networking, deal making and educational opportunities for retail real estate professionals from around the world. With nearly 30,000 attendees and 1,000 exhibitors it is the largest industry convention. The RECon brand now spans four regions: North America, Asia, Middle East and Latin America.

SOURCE Cassidy Turley