NAIOP Announces Legislative Priorities for 2008!
NAIOP has summarized its priority concerns at the federal level in the 2008 Government Affairs Federal Issues Agenda. Among the issues topping the list this year include:
Tax extenders to renew provisions in laws important to the commercial real estate industry that expired at the end of 2007:
Leasehold improvement depreciation, or tenant improvement depreciation, which is the ability to deduct the cost of the customized improvements a building owner makes to a rental space to configure it for a tenant's needs. NAIOP supports the reduction of tenant improvement depreciation to 15 years down from 39 years, which more accurately reflects the economic reality of the improvements' typical lifespan.
Brownfields remediation expensing, which allows the expenses incurred in cleaning up a brownfields site to be written off immediately, creating an important incentive to revitalize contaminated properties. Congress must make sure that these provisions continue and are ultimately made permanent.
Carried interest, or the compensation provided to a general partner that is tied to the ultimate success of a development venture. NAIOP opposes legislative changes to the tax treatment of "carried interest" that would increase taxes from a capital gains rate of 15 percent to rates as high as 35 percent.
Wetlands, an important part of the environment and ecosystem. NAIOP believes that the federal government's regulation of wetlands is arbitrary and overreaching, resulting in unnecessary costs and delayed projects. NAIOP supports a balanced approach that will protect sensitive environmental areas, but opposes legislation that subjects all waters to the legislative powers of Congress.
Energy efficiency, an important consideration in today's commercial real estate industry. At a time of increasing energy costs, both developers and their tenants understand that it makes economic sense to develop properties that lower their costs, thereby keeping them competitive in the marketplace. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 created an "Energy Efficient Commercial Building Tax Incentive," which rewards voluntary energy reductions and is the best way to encourage developers to build to certain targets. This incentive expires at the end of 2008 and should be made permanent.
A summary of NAIOP's position on each issue can be found online click here , as well as the 2008 Legislative Priorities presentation that was unveiled at the Chapter Leadership & Legislative Retreat.
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Press Release
CONTACT:
Hollie Cummings
NAIOP, Nashville Chapter
(615) 500-8193
hollie@naiop-nashville.org
Chantel Gurney
McNeely Pigott & Fox
(615) 259-4000
cgurney@mpf.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 20, 2007
DIRECT ECONOMIC IMPACT OF AREA'S COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE INDUSTRY = $1.5 BILLION, STUDY FINDS
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The commercial real estate industry in the 10-county Nashville region had a $1.5 billion direct impact on the area's economy in 2006, according to a recent study commissioned by the Nashville Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP).
This report shows that the industry accounted for $479 million in property taxes in 2006, which is roughly half (47.7 percent) of the total property taxes collected for the region. It also found that commercial real estate directly supports approximately 34,509 jobs.
"We conducted this study to better understand our industry's impact on the regional economy and its importance for our continued growth," said Tom Harwell, a principal with Eakin Partners and a NAIOP board member. "The fact that commercial properties are paying almost half of the total property taxes in these 10 counties clearly shows that our industry is having a substantial positive impact on the community."
The study reports the direct impact of commercial real estate on the economy, and does not attempt to calculate the ancillary benefits to the community.
"We know that our industry has a substantial impact beyond the direct spending on new building construction and maintaining existing inventory," Harwell said. "Some studies suggest that the multiplier effect of commercial real estate value in a community is three to four times its direct impact. For our purposes, however, we have limited our study to the direct impact that we can quantify."
Students from Vanderbilt University's Owen Graduate School of Management collected state and national data to measure the economic impact. The study looked at existing and new office, industrial and retail buildings in the 10-county area, which includes Cheatham, Davidson, Dickson, Maury, Montgomery, Robertson, Rutherford, Sumner, Williamson and Wilson counties.
It reports that in 2006, new construction of non-governmental office, retail and industrial buildings was approximately 8.181 million square feet of new inventory for the 10-county region. New construction supported 23,853 full-time jobs.
The report also states that there are approximately 277.415 million square feet of commercial real estate in the region, including 53.257 million square feet of office space; 82.712 million square feet of retail space and 141.446 million square feet of industrial space.
The report finds that 10,656 jobs in the region are directly linked to maintaining and servicing that existing inventory.
Of the total $479 million in property taxes from commercial real estate paid regionally in 2006, Davidson County's share totaled $295 million, and accounts for more than half of the total property taxes collected for the entire 10-county area.
"The commercial real estate industry helps define Nashville as a city and is a huge contributor to the tax base," said Mayor Karl Dean. "The property taxes generated by commercial properties make a significant difference for public education and other city services."
ABOUT NAIOP
The National Association of Industrial and Office Properties is the nation's leading trade association for developers, owners, investors and other professionals in industrial, office and mixed-use commercial real estate. Founded in 1967, NAIOP comprises more than 13,000 members in 52 North American chapters and provides networking opportunities, educational programs, research on trends and innovations, and strong legislative representation. The Nashville Chapter of NAIOP strives to enhance business opportunities for our members, provide a forum for continuing education, advance our profession and industry and provide civic leadership as a responsible and valuable asset of our community. For more information, visit www.naiop-nashville.org.
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For a Copy of the Direct Economic Impact Fact Sheet Click Here
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Click Here for the Complete Study
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NAIOP's Economic Impact Study in the news...
Click here for articles from Nashville Business Journal, The City Paper, NashvillePost.com, The Tennessean
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