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Daily News for Commercial Real Estate & Business – February 22, 2011

American Apparel Tempe store closes Shoppers looking for the hip brand American Apparel will have to go to Scottsdale now. The Tempe location of American Apparel, 26 S. Mill Ave., closed on Sunday. The Scottsdale location, 4501 N. Scottsdale Road, remains open. View article…

Sherman & Howard moves to Collier Center Sherman & Howard LLC has relocated to the Collier Center in downtown Phoenix. The Denver-based law firm, which has 24 attorneys in Phoenix, previously had its local offices at 2800 N. Central Ave. View article…

Gilbert’s Native New Yorker expanding The Native New Yorker at Gilbert’s Val Vista Marketplace will enclose its existing side patio as it expands from 3,300 square feet to 5,300 square feet by this summer. “The additional square footage will allow us to try new concepts in attracting and hosting community organizations, youth sports teams and special occasion parties,” said owner Dan Warren in a statement. View article…

Desert Ridge in Phoenix loses Ultimate Electronics but sees opportunity The owner of Desert Ridge Marketplace is looking at the imminent closure of the Ultimate Electronics store at the northeast Phoenix mall as an opportunity to strengthen the mix of stores. Ultimate Electronics will be the first big-box retailer to leave Desert Ridge since the mall opened in 2001 at Loop 101 and Tatum Boulevard. View article…

Shopping landscape in Arizona, nation changing with trends The traditional store is in transition. The boom in online buying, the strength of efficient mass merchandisers such as Amazon.com, Walmart and Costco and the increasing transparency of pricing are among the trends remaking the shopping landscape in Arizona and across the nation. View article…

U-Haul: Phoenix No. 14 moving destination Moving data from U-Haul International Inc. boxed up a 14th-place spot for Phoenix among the 50 most popular destinations. The annual 2010 U-Haul National Migration Trend Report, “The 2010 Top 50 U.S. Destination Cities,” shows Phoenix held the No. 14 spot from 2009. Tucson ranked 28th, up one place from 2009. View article…

Analysis: Wells Fargo could become No. 1 U.S. bank Wells Fargo, already the largest bank in Maricopa County, could one day be the largest in the nation. Wells (NYSE:WFC) serves one-third of the nation’s households, 10 percent of its small businesses and 70 percent of the Fortune 500 – all points made by CEO John Stumpf at this month’s Morgan Stanley Financials Conference. View article…

Real Money: SBA Coming To The Rescue of Small Maturing CRE Loans Small businesses facing maturity of commercial mortgages or balloon payments before Dec. 31, 2012, may be able to refinance their mortgage debt with a 504 loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration under a new, temporary program. The new refinancing loan is structured like SBA’s traditional 504, with borrowers committing at least 10% equity and working with third-party lending institutions and SBA-approved Certified Development Companies in the standard 50%/40% split. View article…

Home Prices Hit Record Low in December: Report Despite an increase in new and existing home sales, home prices in 2010 slumped to their lowest point in December, according to a recent report by mortgage technology company FNC. View article…

If you want a copy of the latest foreclosure spreadsheet, email me and I will send it to you.

Feel free to contact me regarding any of these stories, the current market, distressed commercial real estate opportunities or your property.