Linda Dunfee had many turning points along the way in her career, all of which have made her who she is today -- the senior vice president and managing partner of Voit Commercial Brokerage in San Diego and the first woman in the city to lead a commercial brokerage firm.   

Grubb & Ellis|BRE Commercial, one of the leading providers of integrated real estate services, today announced the addition of Jay Boyle and Brent Rivard to its Financial Advisory Services Group.   

The six R&D buildings of Opus Point are located within the 43-acre Carlsbad Raceway Business Park in the city of Carlsbad. Colliers International has been appointed to market the 207,665-square-foot Opus Point project.   

Hacienda Del Mar, a new luxury office condominium project located at 12625 High Bluff Drive, offers business professionals premium services and amenities.   

Colliers International has been appointed to exclusively market the 120-acre Pacific Coast Business Park in Oceanside. One of Southern California's premier business environments, the development will feature 1.5 million square feet of office, industrial and R&D buildings.   

It has become de rigueur among those in the local commercial real estate market to predict how long the economy will remain on the downward path, and many have offered opinions on what's holding up leasing transactions in San Diego.   

When commercial real estate brokerage firms Jones Lang LaSalle and The Staubach Co. completed their $613 million merger last July, Bill Fleck said the transition wasn't as challenging as one might expect.   

If you are an owner, broker or manager of commercial real estate, it is a matter of when -- not if -- your commercial tenants will look to you for rent relief to help them survive these unprecedented times.   

Much of what makes Voit Commercial Brokerage one of San Diego's leading commercial real estate brokerages is its impressive list of top-performing brokers. Large and small companies look to Voit for their extensive experience and vast real estate knowledge. Voit would like to congratulate its highest producing brokers in 2008 in the San Diego region for their exemplary efforts, which continue to reinforce Voit Commercial Brokerage's exceptional reputation for providing people with the solutions to their real estate needs.   

With a tumultuous second half of 2008 behind us, let's reflect back on several bright spots that occurred in the later part of the year.   

With real estate market conditions at the lowest point they've been in years, an increasing number of industry professionals are considering real estate graduate school as a place to gain valuable skills that will position them for success when the market returns.   

A suburbanite may become the next "endangered species," now that Senate Bill 375 has been signed into law. This landmark legislation, which Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called "the most sweeping revision of land-use policies since Gov. Ronald Reagan signed the California Environmental Quality Act," is designed to fight "sprawl."   

The I-15 corridor in San Diego is a market that has experienced a substantial surge of growth and development over the past few years. Even with restrictions on multitenant office development imposed by the city, the area has flourished as a corporate business hub, with many medium- to large-scale companies expanding and relocating their headquarters or operations to this region.   

Jones Lang LaSalle and CoreNet Global jointly conducted the 2008 Global Trends in Sustainable Real Estate survey in September and October 2008. The survey is aimed at gauging corporate awareness, understanding the key issues driving sustainability in real estate and investigating some of the perceptions shaping corporate action.   

A just released report by Cushman & Wakefield shows that, while the San Diego County industrial market is feeling the effects of the slow economy, it is faring better than other commercial real estate sectors, with the regional vacancy rate projected to stay in the single digits through 2009.   

Last month I proposed a challenge to all local commercial brokers, candidates and the general real estate community to get better educated and improve your skill set. You may not be aware that the CCIM courses cover more than the CI-101 Cash Flow Analysis of commercial real estate investments. While cap rates, internal rates of return and after-tax income are some of the focuses of the 101 course, this class gives you much more in-depth analysis of all the other aspects involved in your commercial investment transaction. Our other courses cover the balance of the real estate industry, as follows.   

This past year was not a pretty one for San Diego's office market, but the vacancy hasn't reached 20 percent -- at least not yet.   

Three market reports placed the fourth quarter countywide retail vacancy rate between 3 and 3.55 percent, but with five major retailers having shuttered their doors, 2009 could be a tough year.   

Sperry closing offices here and while it is opening another, many brokers will be working out of their homes.   

Circuit City is liquidating, including eight local stores, but brokers don't seem too worried.   

Commercial landlords with good credit are finding themselves increasingly unable to refinance their properties, said Sam Chandan, president and chief economist of Real Estate Economics LLC.    

After the worst Christmas season in 40 years, brokers discuss how to hold onto retail tenants.   

Construction spending on offices, shopping centers, hotels and industrial buildings in the U.S. will fall this year and next as the recession prompts businesses to delay or cancel plans, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) said.    

Although a number of car dealerships are closing, several of their properties are already in escrow, being planned for new use.