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There are many mixed signals in the commercial real estate market in the Boise - Nampa - Caldwell market area. Inquiries on listed properties are down, but completed transactions are steady to rising and inquiries and transactions in areas outside of Boise are up.

Months ago, a client told me that another commercial agent told him their calls had fallen off by about 80% from previous activity levels.  At the time, inquiries on our listings had not changed and the level of activity we were experiencing did not change until recently.  In late April, there was  a noticable change in property inquiries.

However, my partner and I were going over transactions and determined a couple of things.  Our net level of inquiries was falling overall, but shifting up in surrounding areas.  We were experiencing less inquiries about commercial properties in the Boise - Garden City - Meridian area.  However transactions completed was steady in thos sub-markets.  That seems to be saying that the people / companies making inquiries into available properties were valid inquries and the "Looky-Lous" had diminished.

The second noticable change was in the number of inquiries in the Nampa - Caldwell area were significantly up and the number of transactions in progress (e.g.; letters of intent or draft leases under review) were significantly up.  To us, that seems to indicate a looseining up from the very noticable move that occurred about a year ago when inquires on properties in outlying areas significantly dropped off.

I've been to several meetings with other commercial real estate agents at CCIM and other meetings and in everyone of them there has been acknowledgement from that peer group that the transactions are getting much more difficult to get done.  I'd say, based on our experience, that's a fair statement, but the transactions are still going on with strenght in some markets, weakness in others, with a net overall neutral change.

Hope all of you are doing well!