Real estate investment trusts and the broader markets fell Wednesday, Dec. 20, as the Republican tax bill heads to the White House.
The MSCI US REIT Index (RMZ) fell 1.21% to 1,142.60, and the SNL US REIT Equity Index slipped 1.10% to close at 313.69. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked down 0.11%, closing at 24,726.65, while the S&P 500 closed 0.08% lower at 2,679.25.
The new Republican tax plan will include lower taxes on dividends for REIT investors, who will be allowed to deduct 20% of their dividend income, with the balance taxed at the filer's marginal rate, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Commercial real estate services firm Newmark Group Inc. closed its IPO of 20 million shares of its class A common stock for estimated gross proceeds of approximately $280 million.
New York REIT completed the $520.0 million sale of its property at 1440 Broadway in New York for net proceeds of approximately $192.9 million. The company also entered into separate contracts to sell for $103.1 million its New York properties at 306 E. 61st St., One Jackson Square and 350 W. 42nd St.
Shares of New York REIT rose 0.26%, closing at $3.93.
Duke Realty Corp. sold its office project in Sandy Springs, Ga., for about $170 million, with Physicians Realty Trust paying $155.9 million for the Northside Center Pointe I & II project at 1100 Johnson Ferry Rd., the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.
Duke Realty shares fell 0.92% to $27.02 and Physicians Realty shares slid 2.52% to close at $17.78.
CIM Group purchased Uber Technologies Inc.'s Uptown Station building in Oakland, Calif., for $180 million. CIM will take over the property's ongoing redevelopment, with completion slated for late 2018.
Japan's Takenaka Corp. paid $268.5 million to acquire the 11-story, Amazon.com Inc.-leased Tilt49 office building in Seattle, the Puget Sound Business Journal reported.
A Hyatt Hotels Corp. affiliate acquired wellbeing brand Exhale Enterprises Inc., which became a stand-alone business as part of Hyatt's wellness category.
Hyatt Hotels shares dropped 0.10% to end the day at $71.60.
Matthew Williams resigned from Equity LifeStyle Properties Inc.'s board following his cessation as CEO of The Martin Agency.
Equity LifeStyle shares closed 0.65% lower at $88.74.
On the macro front, STR data showed that U.S. hotels logged positive results year over year in the three key performance metrics during November, due to residual business in hurricane-affected areas in Texas and Florida.
The National Association of Realtors said existing-home sales in the U.S. in November increased 5.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.81 million from an upwardly revised 5.50 million in October.
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Market prices and index values are current as of the time of publication and are subject to change.
