Gellerstedt sees opportunity in recession - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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"We're beginning to see banks slowlu acknowledge their real estate problemds and pushthese through," Gellerstedtr said Friday. "You may see some [trade] as low as 20 centds on the dollar... This is goinyg to be a slow recovery, but it is also goinfg to presentunprecedented opportunities." Gellerstedt, a was speaking at the Atlanta chapter's UNC Kenan-Flaglerd Business School Alumni breakfast. The held at 's 3344 Peachtree drew about 90 people.
who is replacing the retiring Tom said investors are putting theifr money behind real estate investment trusts so the development companies have the capitaol to buy distressed noting that REITS have raisedabout $13 billionb in the stock markeg this year. "They're not interested in earnings. They want liquidith for the nextthree years," he said. "Theh want us to have the power to Cousins (NYSE: CUZ) will not face any serious debt maturitiex until 2012, he said.
Its relatively healthh liquidity could putthe Atlanta-based developer in a strong positiom as other prominent real estate companies try to pull themselvea out from under mountains of debt -- a problem creater primarily by the easy access to credit in recent buying assets at the top of the marke and the subsequent crasgh in property values. But Cousins hasn't made it througgh the market unscathed. It has struggler to sell high-end condos in Buckhead, where its 32-story 10 Terminus Place was one of 35 condominium projectx in an area of the city knowmn for expensive homes andluxury shopping.
Ten completed in 2008, has 137 The market is affecting high-end units at other including John Williams' The Mansion on Peachtrede andRegent Partners' Sovereig at 3344 Peachtree. "There’s just no market for them," Gellerstedgt said. Cousins is also trying to fillits 25-storty Terminus 200 office building, which has one mobile banking technology firm . Firethorn is leasing two Three other buildings still under constructio in Buckhead haveno tenants. Gellerstedt said, offers an exampls of "the runaway creditg markets." In the months followingy the spate of bank failures thatclaimed , the marketes shut down.
"Now," Gellerstedt said, "Io see some of that fear and panic alleviating."