The Private Real Estate Industry Is on Watch Amid Recession Fears

Corporate attorney Olesya Bakar was quoted in a PERE article interviewing professionals in the real estate industry about the possibility of a recession and how newly imposed tariffs could affect the sector's recovery. Some predict an economic downturn as a result of the measures, which could set back an industry still dealing with the fallout from the pandemic. However, Ms. Bakar, who leads Holland & Knight's real estate fund formation practice, expressed skepticism about a full-blown recession and explained the factors at work.

"There is talk that interest rates may be going down, so even if the prices of houses go up because of higher construction costs, it may be more affordable to borrow, and so maybe it will be a wash," she commented. "However, if other consumer prices go up and there's inflation, the high interest rates may be sticky. It remains to be seen which one of those parameters will prevail."

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