I have always taken “leading economic indicators” with a grain of salt. But there are signs out there that the logjam is finally breaking up. A barometer that I have used for years is, “How often are our properties being shown by the entire brokerage community?” Showings are at a three-year high at the moment.

We recently met a manufacturer and distributor of B2B shipping products. His type of product is used by nearly every manufacturing and warehousing company in the country. He needs more space, reports that his product is flying off the shelf and is struggling to keep up with the demand. Hmmm…

Yes, there is something going on out there. Other news: “CoStar’s monthly National Composite Index of commercial real estate real estate prices increased 2.2% in October from the same period a year ago, the first year-over-year improvement since the economy too a sharp downward turn in 2008.” Also, “Existing home sales continue to climb in November according to the National Association of Realtors.”

There are enough of these signs that I am finally believing that this is not a short-term aberration.