Hello Brick Brief readers, 

Happy Friday. In today’s news, the 30-year mortgage rate finally fell below 6%, industrial outdoor storage continues to draw institutional capital, and AI is moving into mortgage origination and borrower workflows.

🏠 Mortgage Rates Break Below 6%

The 30-year mortgage rate fell to 5.98%, the first sub-6% print since 2022, causing median monthly payments to drop to $2,599 and purchasing power to rise $34,000. Pending sales remain down 5.5% YoY as 79% of homeowners remain locked into mortgage rates below 5%, and monthly payments still account for 27% of median household income.

📦 Institutional Capital Scales Into IOS

Neuberger Berman’s private real estate arm, Almanac, acquired a minority stake in Alterra IOS, the largest US industrial outdoor storage platform. Institutional capital has continued to flow into the sector; Catalyst Investment Partners recently closed an oversubscribed $400M third IOS fund above target, and Brookfield Asset Management agreed to acquire IOS-focused REIT Peakstone Realty Trust for $1.2B.

🤖 AI in Real Estate

As AI reshapes real estate demand and operations, Cushman & Wakefield has launched AI Impact Barometer to track data center, warehouse and office trends tied to tech expansion. In the mortgage sector, Better.com has deployed AI loan agent Betsy to handle routine borrower questions and escalate complex files to licensed loan officers, allowing the platform to automate 35.5% of 100K monthly calls and double lead-to-lock conversion in 2025.

10-year Treasury yield falls to 4.01%, lowest since November – Broad demand for duration and month-end index rebalancing fuel bond rally, helping push 30-year mortgage rates below 6% (Bloomberg)

Companies increasingly citing AI to justify workforce reductions and cost cuts – Morningstar warns markets are rewarding automation narratives over productivity redeployment; WiseTech shares jumped 11% after announcing plans to cut 2,000 roles (Bloomberg)

Block cuts 4,000 jobs, nearly halving workforce, in AI pivot – Jack Dorsey says rapid model gains enable leaner operations as fintech joins broader tech push to replace roles with automation (Bloomberg)

Seems company specific for now but a worrying precedent. AI-driven efficiency cuts and workforce reductions remain something to watch for labor market health, rate policy and office demand.

US weekly jobless claims rise to 212,000; unemployment rate seen steady at 4.3% – Continuing claims fall to 1.833M as labor market remains low-hire, low-fire with no clear signs of recession (Reuters)

Fed’s Miran backs four 25-bps cuts in 2026 – Says labor market still needs support and argues inflation is no longer a problem despite strong January job growth (Reuters)

Fed’s Goolsbee sees several 2026 rate cuts but not imminently – Says he is optimistic about easing this year while cautioning against moving too quickly before clearer evidence inflation is returning to 2% (Reuters)

RCA CPPI US National All Property Index rises 0.3% YoY in January as pricing momentum weakens – Industrial up 3.7% YoY; retail fell 1.3%; apartments fell 0.1%; and CBD office fell 1.3% amid elevated financing costs (ConnectCRE)

Cushman & Wakefield launches AI Impact Barometer to track tech-driven real estate demand – Tool analyzes data center, warehouse and office trends as brokerages ramp up AI tools to boost efficiency and defend market share (CushmanWakefield)

Invesco launches Core Plus Real Estate CIT for defined contribution plans – Daily valued vehicle expands private real estate access for retirement portfolios with core-plus strategy and REIT liquidity sleeve (IREI)

Invesco is packaging institutional private real estate into a structure that fits inside 401(k) plans, which traditionally have been limited to daily priced public funds. The core portfolio holds private properties for steady income, and a smaller allocation to publicly traded REITs provides the liquidity needed for daily pricing and participant withdrawals.

This move follows President Trump’s August 2025 executive order, Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors, which directs federal agencies to expand access to private equity, private credit and real estate in defined contribution plans.

Sens. Josh Hawley and Jeff Merkley introduce bipartisan Homes for American Families Act to bar large institutional investors from buying single-family homes – Separate bill would impose 15% excise tax on hedge fund taxpayers with $50M+ AUM to encourage divestment (Realtor.com)

Trump administration rescinds 30-day eviction notice for federally subsidized housing – HUD and USDA revert to local timelines, potentially shortening notices to as little as 3 days for some tenants (Bisnow)

Insurance costs drive up NYC construction prices – Surging premiums tied to regulations, litigation risk and project delays are inflating housing and infrastructure costs, complicating affordability efforts (Bloomberg)

30-year mortgage rate falls to 5.98%, first sub-6% print since 2022 – Modest affordability relief, but 70% of owners remain locked below 5% and payments still equal 27% of median income (Bloomberg)

Homebuying affordability improves as weekly mortgage rate falls to 6.01% – Median monthly payment drops to $2,599 and purchasing power rises $34,000, though pending sales remain down 5.5% YoY (Redfin)

Mortgage rates fall below 6% sooner than expected in 2026 – $30,000 boost in buying power could spur psychological rebound in demand as monthly payments improve (Zillow)

FHFA Director Bill Pulte says $200B MBS purchase plan is near-term focus – Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac IPO can still “very much” happen in 2026 despite valuation gap (NationalMortgageNews)

Buyers shopping outside their home metro drove 61.9% of listing views in 2025Q4 – 87 of 100 largest metros were led by nonlocal demand; 39 shifted from locally driven in 2019 to majority out-of-market interest (Realtor.com)

Compass to syndicate exclusive “Coming Soon” listings to Redfin – Three-year partnership sends leads to Compass agents and integrates Rocket Mortgage products into platform (Redfin)

US apartment rents rise 0.1% in February to $1,716, up 0.4% YoY – Third straight monthly gain as supply-heavy Sun Belt markets lag Midwest and select coastal metros (CoStar)

Office occupancy dips week ending February 21, national average at 55.3% – Class A+ weekly occupancy falls to 76.1% as post-holiday attendance declines across most major market (KastleSystems)

AI boom sparks San Francisco office comeback – Investors relaunch stalled megaprojects and plan new towers as 1M+ SF of Q4 leasing and trophy scarcity fuel bets that AI demand can reset a 31% vacant market (Bloomberg)

US container trade weathers tariff volatility – About half of domestic port markets maintain healthy availability rates despite recent policy uncertainty (CoStar)

Costco raises membership fees without slowing traffic – Same-store visits rise into early 2026 as chain attracts younger households and deepens loyalty despite tighter access rules (Placerai)

Cava targets 1,000 restaurants by 2032 – Mediterranean chain plans 74–76 openings in 2026 as it pushes past 500 units and ramps toward 100+ stores annually (CoStar)

NextEra Energy to sell $2B of equity units to fund power projects – Utility raises capital as grid upgrades and data center-driven electricity demand accelerate, with option to upsize by $300M (Reuters)

Denver mayor proposes moratorium on new data centers – City to review energy, water and zoning rules amid neighborhood backlash and climate concerns, exempting projects already underway (Bisnow)

Lab landlords slash rents and offer rich concessions amid 24% vacancy – Life sciences rents fall 3.1% to $66 per SF as owners dangle free rent and TI packages to compete for scarce tenants (Bisnow)

Dell projects $50B in AI server sales for fiscal 2027 – Record $43B backlog and 73% infrastructure revenue growth signal sustained demand from data center and hyperscale customers (Bloomberg)

Neuberger Berman’s Almanac acquires minority stake in Alterra IOS – Investment backs largest US industrial outdoor storage platform as institutional capital continues flowing into IOS sector (PERE)

Investor appetite for IOS continues to be strong. Recent IOS-related activity includes Catalyst Investment Partners closing an oversubscribed $400M third IOS fund that capped above target and Brookfield Asset Management agreeing to acquire IOS-focused REIT Peakstone Realty Trust for ~$1.2B.

Bozzuto Group and Invesco launch $1B venture to acquire East Coast multifamily – Targeting older apartment buildings that have lost value and upgrading them to compete with newer high-amenity properties (CNBC)

S&P downgrades hotel and net-lease REIT Service Properties Trust to B- over $2B debt wall – About 40% of borrowings mature within 24 months, increasing refinancing and liquidity pressure despite asset sales (Bisnow)

Better.com says AI loan agent Betsy cut average cost to originate 41% and doubled lead-to-lock conversi on in 2025 - AI voice technology provider ElevenLabs’ case study shows the system handled ~100K calls per month and automated 35.5% of inquiries end to end (HousingWire)

Better.com’s AI agent listens to borrower questions, checks real-time eligibility and pricing in its internal loan system, and delivers voice responses to borrowers.

The agent can resolve routine borrower questions on its own and send more complex scenarios to licensed loan officers with full context. By automating 35.5% of inquiries across 100K monthly calls, it reduces the need for lower-specialized customer service staff