This Week's D.C. Deal Sheet

Thanks for reading The Bisnow Weekender, my personally curated roundup of the most impactful news, notable quotes, binge-worthy show recommendations and other colorful highlights from the Bisnow world of commercial real estate and beyond.  

I am going to call it now: WeWork will declare bankruptcy on Tuesday. 

Why do I say that? Well, there was a Wall Street Journal report this week that basically said so, citing “people familiar with the matter.” Following that news, a WeWork spokesperson reached by Bisnow declined to comment on the WSJ report, calling it speculation. 

However, the WeWork rep did tell Bisnow that the company still has “a clear, long-term vision for the future and over the past few months we have taken a series of decisive actions to improve our business.”

That said, Bisnow also reported this week that WeWork got a one-week extension to make good on its $95M in missed debt payments — and that deadline is, well, 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday.

So, Tuesday is the day. 

I could be wrong, but a bombshell report dropping (and WeWork denying it) is a foxtrot that has been tearing up the business media dance floor since the coworking goliath’s stunning $47B failed IPO in 2019. This week’s tango was par for the ballroom. And while there has been rampant…

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In Case You Missed It...

Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 150,000 jobs in October, a little less than consensus estimates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

The unemployment rate moved up to 3.9%. 

Worker strikes had an impact in the manufacturing sector, which lost 38,000 jobs in October, 33,000 of which were in motor vehicles and parts.  In commercial real estate-related sectors, construction employment grew by 23,000 jobs in October after averaging 18,000 jobs added over the prior 12 months.  The leisure and hospitality…

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The American dream of homeownership slipping further out of reach is boosting multifamily demand and helping the industry keep its head above water amid threats posed by new supply deliveries and rising rent delinquency.

Spiking interest rates and high property values are keeping tenants in their rentals. That is providing multifamily communities with healthy occupancy and retention, executives of some of the nation's largest multifamily REITs said on third-quarter earnings calls over the past week.

But a rising number of tenants not paying rent and avoiding eviction for as long as possible is complicating the picture. Meanwhile, increased supply in all the wrong places is encouraging competition and concessions, with some executives saying they expect rent growth to temporarily slow as a result. 

The percentage of tenants moving out of  AvalonBay Communities’ properties to purchase homes dipped below 10% this year, well below the long-term average, which hovers in the mid-teens, Chief Operating Officer  Sean Breslin said. “[The] difference between the cost of owning the median-price home and median rent…

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