With the continuing housing slump and overall low growth economic conditions, commercial real estate nationwide isn’t expected to begin to turn prices around until 2011 but the local conditions in Cincinnati may have a brighter outlook.
According to a recent article in the Kentucky Post:

“If the market hasn’t bottomed out [in Cincinnati], it’s very near bottom,” said CB Richard Ellis managing partner Ken Murawski, adding that the first half of 2010 will show marginal growth. Then, he says, things will start to get better in the second half of the year.”

Uniquely Cincinnati

Beyond the effects of the national situation, Cincinnati’s circumstances may also be effected by staff consolidations from various spaces in the Central Business District as businesses, particularly American Financial, begin their long planned move into the new Queen City Square office tower. The glut of available office space has caused many landlords to lower rates and negotiate new long term leases before current leases expire.

Buyer’s and Tenant’s Market

All that means, it is a good time for forward thinkers to get into the market for investment and new leased spaces at historically low prices compared to long term trends.

“I think now is an ideal time for real estate investors to begin acquiring properties,” said Keith Yearout, also in the CBRE Investment Properties Private Client Group. He said smart investors will selectively acquire assets now, instead of waiting for the heard to come back to the market at some point in 2011.

“I think investors have to take a hard look at where market rents are, strength of tenants, length of lease terms, but for the deals that pass the little more stringent underwriting criteria, I think there are attractive values out there,” Yearout added.

There are also some cautions pointed out in the article so read the whole thing.