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5 Pieces of Proof That Retail Real Estate Looks Strong Heading Into ICSC LAS VEGAS
4 Recent Trades Combine To Top 5M SF
Retail Real Estate Veterans John McWeeney, Chris Thomas and Jeff Berkowitz Have Passed Away

5 Pieces of Proof That Retail Real Estate Looks Plenty Strong Heading Into ICSC LAS VEGAS

First-quarter reports from some of commercial real estate’s biggest services firms reveal retail real estate’s power on the eve of the world’s largest commercial real estate gathering.

Newmark: U.S. Retail Sales Hit $19B in Q1, the Highest First‑Quarter Total in a Decade

Retail real estate dealmaking sizzled in the first quarter of 2026. Newmark’s 1Q26 U.S. Retail Market Conditions & Trends report said U.S. retail real estate sales reached $19 billion in the first quarter, making it the strongest quarter for retail real estate in the past 10 years. The quarter’s 17 single-asset deals of $100 million or more resulted in $8.1 billion in sales, the highest first-quarter sales volume for deals that size in the past 10 years and the second-highest number of deals of that size for any quarter in that period. Those 17 deals formed 43% of all sales volume for the quarter, reflecting institutional investors’ focus on large assets.

Solid retail fundamentals, especially at larger properties, attracted new investors to retail in 2025, and Newmark expects heightened investor interest in retail property to continue this year, thanks to tenant demand. “The top centers will remain in demand by retailers and other retail occupiers, especially for brands expanding from overseas who need standout locations for their first U.S. stores,” according to the report.

CBRE: Retail Rents Rise as Supply Constraints Support Fundamentals

Retail fundamentals remained on solid footing in the first quarter, supported by constrained supply and steady leasing demand. CBRE’s U.S. Retail Q1 2026 report said average asking rents rose 2.4% year over year to $24.59 per square foot, marking the third consecutive quarter of positive net absorption. Availability rose modestly to 4.9%, reflecting store closures and space reductions tied to select retailer bankruptcies.

Performance varied by location. Suburban retail outperformed downtown corridors as hybrid work patterns sustained demand closer to where workers live. Since 2022, downtown availability has increased by 120 basis points, while suburban availability has declined by 91 basis points.

Regionally, Sun Belt markets led both development and leasing activity in the first quarter. Phoenix posted the highest levels of new construction, at 744,000 square feet, and net absorption, at 547,000 square feet, while Texas accounted for five of the top 10 construction markets and more than 30% of total development activity.

Colliers: Limited New Construction Helps Keep Retail Vacancy Near 5%

Colliers’ U.S. Retail Market Statistics 1Q26 report highlighted ongoing supply constraints across the retail sector. New construction deliveries totaled less than 10 million square feet over the past year, keeping inventory growth below 1%, which is lower than the 2% to 3% pre-pandemic average, according to Colliers.

Demand moderated in the first quarter, with slightly negative net absorption nationally as store closures offset new leasing, the report noted. Even so, vacancy held within a tight range of about 4.5% to 5%, supported by the limited supply pipeline. Leasing activity continues to shift toward service-oriented tenants, with food-and-beverage, fitness and healthcare users accounting for more than 50% of new leasing in many markets, Colliers reported.

Cushman & Wakefield: Pricing Is Stabilizing for Grocery-Anchored Centers

On the investment side, retail cap rates stabilized in the mid-6% range for high-quality grocery-anchored centers, following an expansion of about 75 to 100 basis points since 2022, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s MarketBeat United States Retail Q1 2026 report. Transaction activity remained concentrated in necessity-based assets, which continue to command the strongest pricing and investor demand.

Lee & Associates: Canada’s Retail Vacancy Falls to 2.5%, Outperforming the U.S. Market

Canada’s retail market posted a national vacancy rate of 2.5% in the first quarter of 2026, well below the U.S. rate of 4.4%, according to Lee & Associates’ 2026 Q1 North America Market Report. Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary all came in below the national figure. The sector’s biggest headwind is the fallout from Hudson’s Bay Co., which shuttered 80 department stores last year, returning 15 million square feet to the market as U.S.-Canada trade tensions escalated. Outside the anchor vacancy challenge, fundamentals in neighborhood, strip and single-tenant formats remain healthy; construction pipelines in Toronto and Calgary, Alberta, signal continued developer confidence; and investor demand shows little sign of letting up.

4 Recent Trades Combine To Top 5M SF

One repositioned mall has traded, one mall is about to sell out of receivership and will get its own repositioning. A portfolio of 14 centers across seven states has sold. And a former department store that already has a hospital use in place traded, and the rest of the space will get fresh retail.

Annapolis Mall, Fresh Off Repositioning, Sells to Macerich for $272M

Kildare Partners, Atlas Hill RE and Centennial have sold Maryland’s Annapolis Mall and an adjacent 13-acre vacant Sears parcel to Macerich in a $272 million deal. The previous owners repositioned the 1.5 million-square-foot super-regional center, which went into receivership in 2024. During the repositioning, the mall attracted several new tenants, including Dick’s House of Sport, Uniqlo, Offline by Aerie, Tesla, Swarovski, Jack & Jones, Abercrombie & Fitch and Dave & Buster’s.

Providence Place Mall Poised for $133M Sale and Repositioning

A partnership formed by Pyramid Management Group, Paolino Properties and DW Partners is buying Rhode Island’s Providence Place mall out of receivership. Following court approval of the roughly $133 million deal, the three companies gained exclusive rights to negotiate a purchase contract. Once the acquisition closes, the partnership plans to revitalize and reposition the 1.4 million-square-foot property. Providence Place, which The Providence Journal said opened in 1999, went into receivership in 2024. Tenants include Apple, Dave & Buster’s, Boscov’s, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Sephora, The Cheesecake Factory, Uniqlo, Zara, Champs Sports and Brazilian steakhouse Fogo de Chão, according to Chain Store Age.

Continental Realty Buys 14‑Center, 2M‑SF Shopping Center Portfolio for $200M

Continental Realty Corp. has purchased a more than 2 million-square-foot portfolio of 14 shopping centers across seven states from U.S. Properties Group for $200 million.

The deal brings Continental’s U.S. shopping center portfolio to more than 10.5 million square feet and increases its assets under management to nearly $5 billion. The portfolio is 93% leased to tenants like Hobby Lobby, Ross Dress for Less, Five Below, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Belk and Bob’s Discount Furniture. The largest center in the deal is the 300,000-square-foot Streets of Indian Lake in Hendersonville, Tennessee.

Zelco Plans Retail Repositioning of Former Lord & Taylor With Hospital Tenant in Place

What’s old is becoming new again in Eastchester, New York, north of New York City. Zelco Properties & Development and an unnamed partner purchased a 200,473-square-foot former Lord & Taylor department store where White Plains Hospital occupies about one-third of the space. The hospital use will remain, according to Zelco. The buyers plan to reposition the rest of the two-level property into a retail destination with a high-end health club, a regional bakery and cafe, a fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant, and home furnishings and household goods retailers.

Retail Real Estate Veterans John McWeeney, Chris Thomas and Jeff Berkowitz Have Passed Away

Longtime ICSC member John McWeeney passed away on March 26 at age 82. McWeeney was a commercial real estate developer, working for the Stop & Shop grocery chain and Tedeschi Realty and later as a consultant. He was previously a State Director for the New England Marketplace.

Childress Klein retail principal Chris Thomas, a longtime ICSC member, passed away on April 29, The Charlotte Ledger reported. Before joining Childress Klein in 1988, Thomas was real estate manager and vice president of real estate for the Belk department store chain. He was a member of the ICSC@SOUTHEAST committee.

Jeff Berkowitz passed away on April 26 at age 78. He was founder and chair of Berkowitz Development Group, based in Coconut Grove, Florida. According to his obituary, Berkowitz “was widely regarded as one of Miami-Dade County’s preeminent retail developers and helped shape the commercial landscape of South Florida.” Under his leadership, the company developed more than 2 million square feet of retail, office and industrial, including Dadeland Station shopping center, which his obituary stated was the first major vertical power center in the U.S. Going forward, Berkowitz’s son Michael Berkowitz will lead the company as president, the South Florida Business Journal reported.