PNC: RE Won't Hit Bottom Till Late '03

Real estate markets are not likely to hit bottom until late this year, but the worst of the market contraction is past, according to a forecast by PNC Real Estate Finance, Pittsburgh.Nicholas Buss, vice president and director of real estate market research at PNC, says in the company's annual Real Estate Industry Outlook that new construction linked to the "tech-boom hangover" will overshadow any improvement in the demand for space resulting from modest economic growth. "This should position real estate for recovery in 2004, but it will likely be a slow and steady re-emergence," he said. Mr. Buss predicts that the vacancy rate in the office sector will peak at 17% this year and that the apartment sector faces "another challenging year" as overbuilding becomes "a real concern" in a growing number of markets. The company can be found online at http://www.pncrealestatefinance.com.