SmartRent.com Inc., which sells smart home-technology systems to apartment-building owners and developers, intends to go public through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company that values the property-tech startup at $2.2 billion.
Startup Funding
In the first quarter this year, U.S. startups raised $69 billion from investors—41% more than the previous record, set in the fourth quarter of 2018.
Mack Forecloses
Mack Real Estate Group has taken over control of seven limited- and full-service hotels totaling 1,087 rooms in New York City through a loan foreclosure. A Mack affiliate provided an $85 million mezzanine loan while the value of the ownership transfer was listed at $315.8 million.
Kimco Weingarten
Kimco Realty Corp. has agreed to acquire fellow grocery-anchored shopping-center owner Weingarten Realty Investors for nearly $3.9 billion in cash and stock.
Home Supply
The U.S. housing market is 3.8 million single-family homes short of what is needed to meet the country’s demand, according to a new analysis by mortgage-finance company Freddie Mac. The estimate represents a 52% rise in the nation’s home shortage compared with 2018, the first time Freddie Mac quantified the shortfall.
Eviction Moratorium
The Biden administration extended through June a federal moratorium on evicting individuals making up to $99,000 and couples making up to $198,000 annually who say they can’t pay rent because of coronavirus-related hardships.
Inflation Watch
The consumer-price index jumped 2.6% in the year ended March. The Fed expects inflation to rise temporarily this year because of growing demand fueled by increased vaccination rates, falling restrictions on businesses and trillions of dollars in federal pandemic relief programs.
Brands v REITs
Hotel brand company stock values were down 7.4% from March 2020, but up 39.7% over March 2019, whereas hotel REIT stock values were down 27.1% year-over-year and up 10.1% from this time in 2019. Year-to-date, hotel brand stocks are up 10.6%, compared to a 17% increase for hotel REITs.
Investor Borrowings
Investors have borrowed a record $814 billion against their portfolios, up 49% from one year earlier. This marks the fastest annual increase since 2007, during the frothy period before the 2008 financial crisis. Before that, the last time investor borrowings had grown so rapidly was during the dot-com bubble in 1999.
Pandemic Leases
Landlords are offering long-term office leases of four and more years at discounts up to 13% below rent rates reached in the first quarter of 2020. Companies are also seeking on average about 10% less space.