Exterior view of multifamily residential building under construction in Palo Alto, California. A crane is moving materials to a higher level of the building as lower levels are completed.

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According to a recent survey from researchers at commercial brokerage CBRE, more investors are preparing to provide capital into the United States commercial real estate market

And Greater Boston could be one of the top recipients.

Seventy percent of investors are planning to acquire more assets in 2025 than in the previous year, according to the survey. Additionally, Investors are broadly positive about the overall market and even more so about their own plans, with 75 percent anticipating a rebound in their own investment activity by the first half of the year and over half already experiencing recovery.

This is despite their general belief that 10-year Treasury yields will stay above 4 percent in 2025, making project financing more expensive and a tougher sell compared to other long-term investments.

Most investors told CBRE they will maintain the same debt-to-equity ratios as last year, thanks in part to uncertainty about where interest rates are going.

“Investors are preparing to deploy more capital into the U.S. commercial real estate market this year, drawn by the attractive pricing environment and strong fundamentals,” Kevin Aussef, Americas president of investment properties for CBRE, said in a statement. “Interestingly, investors are more optimistic about their own prospects compared with the broader market outlook, viewing the ongoing reset in pricing as a key opportunity to secure a first-mover advantage as the recovery gains momentum.”

Greater Boston was also named one of the top CRE markets in the nation according to the survey.

The Massachusetts capital came in third behind Miami and Dallas. Clocking in at third has Boston ahead of Atlanta, New York City – which tied with Raliegh-Durham, North Carolina – and Washington D.C., which tied with Austin, Texas.

The region didn’t even place in the top 10 for investors last year.

Multifamily remains the top sector for investors by a wide margin, with 75 percent of investors targeting the asset class according to the survey Industrial & logistics in the next most favorable asset class at 37 percent.

In the city of Boston itself, officials say around 20,000 multifamily units lie approved but unbuilt, and state legislators recently granted a two-year extension on permits for all multifamily developers in recognition of the tough financing environment that’s prevailed since 2022.

Researchers at brokerage Berkadia project that Greater Boston’s rents will grow by around 3.5 percent next year thanks to ongoing strong demand and the limited increase in supply from the state’s MBTA Communities transit-oriented zoning reform law. In addition, developers and investors are showing increased interest in multifamily assets in southeastern New Hampshire, which forms the outer fringe of Greater Boston’s metro area.

More CRE Capital Expected in 2025, Boston Named Top Market

by Sam Minton time to read: 2 min
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