Building Wisdom

Lehman Brothers I‘m not going to write much about Lehman’s demise because there will be thousands of column inches out there (most ignoring the equally important news of the BoA purchase of Merrill Lynch and the problems at AIG). Lehman’s British companies have mostly been put into administration. A

One way of spotting a serious recession in the commercial property market is the inevitable whining and moaning by retailers about the rental obligations of their premises. It’s happening again, with a concerted effort by the British Retail Consortium to change the way retailers pay rent. I recollec

Apologies for the hiatus in posts. This was due to what might be termed a family tragedy. A number of posts will follow soon.

Bankers’ bonuses get mentioned in the media again and again and again and again and yet again. Much gnashing of teeth and wearing of hairshirts isn’t going to solve the problem, although it is better than ignoring the problem altogether. Whilst it is good that UBS has acknowledged that bonuses shoul

Estimates of job cuts in the City are increasing week by week (and have now started). This is no surprise. Financial institutions have also viewed staff as a liquid commodity and as the easiest overhead to cut when the going gets tough. This article points out one implication for the commercial pro

It gets tiring seeing the same issues coming around again with each economic cycle. Once more it's yet bankers' bonuses, now viewed with a mixture of horror and indignation at payments made to ne'er-do-wells who do little more than mess up the economy. It may make good copy, but such an attitude is

The previous article points out that banks invariably cause themselves harm by restricting lending when markets need liquidity and - based on recent announcements and revelations in the UK - they appear to have found a new way of hurting their customers and thereby, themselves....

One of the most critical components of a downturn in property values is a fall in liquidity. Bank lending has been the largest component in market liquidity for a long time in the UK, usually leading institutional investment and independent equity....

This blog was first conceived some time ago, long before the word ‘blog’ came into common usage. The first few posts had been mapped out, explaining why a commercial (and residential) property crash was inevitable and how it would manifest itself. The mechanics were to be explained and emphasis was