Positive signs are emerging from across the commercial property spectrum, business leaders were told at a recent breakfast staged by property agents Colliers International in Bristol.
Speakers at the event gave overviews of specialist sectors including hotels, healthcare, caravan parks, licensed and leisure, and automotive and roadside.
The briefing included a commentary on trading performance tied to the transactional market and capital values.
Colliers associate director Ben Jones said: “Whilst these sectors are some way adrift from their heydays, there is positivity in each.”
The firm’s director of research and forecasting Dr Walter Boettcher pointed out that the sectors are all heavily dependent on discretionary spending and sensitive to perceptions of value.
Discretionary spending, he said, is linked to confidence and this was looking pretty dismal last year. While it may have improved dramatically between December and February, real household disposable income has fallen for a record six consecutive quarters meaning there is “not much fat left” to spend in these sectors.
He added, however, that there are some signs of traction in the economy in the second half of this year, with profitability likely to stabilise across most sectors.
The briefing took place at Collier’s Broad Quay office.
