Hello Brick Brief readers, 

Thank you for your continued support! Today we’re seeing Bill Ackman push to uplist Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the NYSE, the office sector post gains that remain concentrated even as they begin to spread, and the housing market send mixed signals.

🏛️ Ackman Pushes NYSE Uplisting Over a Public Offering
Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman argued that Fannie and Freddie should move from OTC trading to a NYSE listing as the agencies already trade publicly and an uplisting would avoid years of capital-rule rebuilding and congressional barriers tied to launching a full offering. An IPO process would also reopen uncertainty around how government guarantees for Fannie and Freddie’s agency MBS and debt are backed, which could lift agency MBS yields and mortgage rates at a moment when the current administration is prioritizing housing affordability and lower rates.

🏢 Office Sector Is Showing Early Stabilization but a Narrow Recovery
The office sector is showing early stabilization as vacancy dipped to 18.3%, absorption strengthened, and investment rebounded enough to support firmer pricing. The recovery is still concentrated at a few locations such as Manhattan and Dallas, which have captured most of the gains while many metros continue to struggle with elevated vacancies and weak rent growth.

🏡 Housing Shows a Split October Signal From Redfin and Zillow
The housing market showed a mixed October as Redfin’s closed-sale metrics tied to summer contracts pointed to a flat backdrop, while Zillow’s real-time indicators captured a late-month lift as mortgage rates fell to 6.25% and pushed new listings and pending sales up 5% YoY. A different split is emerging in housing-linked earnings, as James Hardie is benefiting from steadier new-construction activity while Home Depot is facing weaker renovation demand that depends on turnover and household consumer confidence.

30Y Mortgage: 6.38% 

10Y Treasury Yield: 4.12% (-1 bps)

WSJ Prime Rate: 7.25%

FTSE NAREIT Index: 760.47 (+0.44%)

30-day SOFR Average: 4.10%

US jobless rolls hit a two-month high in mid-October – Continuing claims rose to 1.957M while new claims held at 232K, reflecting softening labor momentum as shutdown-delayed data comes online (Reuters)

Fed remains deeply split as shutdown-delayed data returns – Policymakers disagree over prioritizing inflation or slowing job growth, pushing markets away from expecting a December rate cut (Reuters)

Fed’s Barkin says December decision hinges on fresh data – He cautions that inflation and labor signals remain unclear after the shutdown disrupted official statistics (WSJ)

Bank of America says small and mid-sized businesses expect a stronger 2026 – 74% see revenue growth and most plan expansion as tariff stabilization, cooling inflation and improving supply chains lift confidence (Reuters)

U.S. CRE investment sales jump 23.7% QoQ and 25.1% YoY in Q3 2025 – Volume hit $150.6B as multifamily drove 51.1% annual growth while hospitality fell 11.9% (ConnectCRE)

FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program was canceled, raising risk for billions in CRE – The funding cut forces cities to fill major resiliency gaps and exposes properties to higher insurance costs and climate-driven losses (Bisnow)

Bay Area recall votes over housing threaten zoning reform – Local officials face removal for supporting higher-density plans, creating uncertainty for developers building under state mandates and builder’s remedy rules (Bisnow)

U.S. home prices edge up 0.3% in October – Year-over-year growth slowed to 2.9% as rising inventory earlier in the year cooled demand and metro-level declines narrowed to 14 markets (Redfin)

U.S. housing market stayed stuck in October - Sales, listings and prices were nearly flat as existing-home sales hovered around a 4.24M annual pace and buyers secured average discounts of 1.5% below final list prices (Redfin)

Affordability hits a three-year high in October – A dip in mortgage rates to 6.25% drove 5% YoY gains in new listings and pending sales as inventory recovery and lower monthly payments sparked the strongest fall housing activity since 2022 (Zillow)

Insight: Redfin captures a market that stayed stuck in October as sales and listings barely moved even while its Median Sale Price metric rose 0.3% on closed sales tied to tighter summer contracts. Zillow highlights a late-month shift driven by a dip in mortgage rates to 6.25% that pulled buyers and sellers back in and lifted new listings and pending sales, which shows up in the faster-moving Zillow Home Value Index. Affordability-constrained buyers responded quickly once monthly payments improved. October’s 0.3% price gain reflects closings that lag contract signings by 30 to 60 days, so the price data tracks earlier conditions rather than real-time activity.

Builder sentiment holds at weak levels in November - NAHB index ticks up to 38 as buyers hesitate due to the shutdown, job security concerns, and rising construction costs while 41% of builders cut prices and incentives reach 65% (NAHB)

Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman says a Fannie-Freddie IPO is neither feasible nor desirable right now – He instead proposes moving the agencies from OTC trading to a NYSE listing that could value them near $400B (Reuters)

Insight: Ackman argues that a simple NYSE transfer makes more sense than an IPO because the agencies already trade publicly, and an uplisting avoids complex capital rules, preferred-stock disputes, Treasury-warrant mechanics, government-guarantee questions, and congressional barriers that will add years to any true offering. Fannie and Freddie play a central role in the housing market because they buy mortgages from lenders, package them into agency MBS, and provide the guarantees that make this market function at scale. The IPO path injects uncertainty into how Fannie and Freddie’s government guarantees are backed (Treasury bonds and other government-backed debt are considered default-free), which could push agency MBS yields higher and translate into higher mortgage rates for borrowers. 

The Trump administration is currently laser-focused on housing affordability, which is why they are pushing for lower interest rates and proposing a 50-year mortgage. A NYSE listing gives the government a more liquid market that makes it easier to sell its large ownership stake.

Compass sues Zillow in New York court over its ban on previously marketed listings – Compass argues the rule is anticompetitive and protects Zillow’s control of listing data while Zillow says private networks hoard inventory and harm market transparency (Bloomberg)

Realtors reject expanded referral-fee disclosure rule – A proposal to broaden required revenue disclosures under the Code of Ethics passed an initial vote but failed in the final round (Inman)

U.S. apartment rents fall for 27th straight month – Median asking rent for 0–2 bedroom units slipped 1.7% YoY to $1,696 as lower-cost metros pulled in more out-of-market renters and 20 major markets shifted toward newcomer-driven demand (Realtor.com)

The office sector is showing continued signs of early stabilization as vacancy inches lower and investment rebounds. Yet, the recovery is still narrow as Class A space and a small group of markets like Manhattan have generated most of the gains. Most metros continue to struggle with high vacancies and weak rent growth, which raises the question of whether recent optimism is running slightly ahead of what the broader market can truly support.

Office vacancy posts first decline since 2019 as Q3 vacancy dips 10 bps to 18.3% – Absorption hit 10.6M SF and marked the fifth straight positive quarter (Colliers)

Office demand concentrates in leading markets, as Manhattan and Dallas drive 2025 absorption – Nearly half of U.S. markets posted occupancy gains as the recovery slightly broadens (Colliers)

Office investment surges with $19.4B in Q3 sales and a 7.1% YoY pricing gain – Institutional capital returned to CBD assets and lifted volume 62% (Colliers)

Office recovery remains highly uneven – New York and San Francisco show early improvement while most U.S. markets face high vacancies and weak rents (WSJ)

US factory orders rose 1.4% MoM in August – The rebound followed a July drop, though core capital-goods data signaled softer business equipment spending (Reuters)

Drugmakers race to expand U.S. manufacturing as 100% drug-import tariffs loom – Companies commit tens of billions to new plants and inventory builds to avoid penalties and secure exemptions (Reuters)

L3Harris will invest $400M to expand solid-rocket-motor production in Arkansas – The new Camden campus will boost output sixfold to meet rising U.S. missile-defense demand (Reuters)

Nvidia and Microsoft launch a $15B AI alliance with Anthropic – Anthropic will purchase $30B of Azure compute built on Nvidia systems (WSJ)

NERC warns of rising winter power risks as data-center demand surges – Peak loads are climbing faster than new supply, increasing the chance of cold-weather shortages across PJM, the Southeast and parts of the West (Reuters)

US approves a $1B loan to restart Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear plant – Constellation plans to revive the shuttered site to supply Microsoft’s expanding AI power needs (WSJ)

U.S. data center construction costs rise 5.5% YoY for traditional air-cooled builds – AI-ready liquid-cooled facilities carry a 7–10% premium as Silicon Valley hits $13.3/W and New Jersey reaches $12.9/W (TurnerTownsend)

Medical outpatient building investment jumps 27% QoQ in Q3 to $2.7B – MOB cap rates hold near 7% and average rents reach a record $25.20 PSF (CBRE)

Home Depot missed Q3 earnings expectations and cut its full-year forecast as weaker home improvement demand, soft consumer spending and lower-than-usual storm activity weighed on results. The retailer had expected a gradual pickup in home improvement activity alongside easing mortgage rates and stronger sales of roofing materials, generators and other storm-driven categories, but neither dynamic materialized as consumer uncertainty and housing pressure continued to hold back demand.

Insight: Yesterday, fiber cement siding manufacturer James Hardie raised its full-year guidance as management pointed to more stable market conditions and normalized inventories than it had assumed in its prior outlook. Home Depot, however, cut its forecast after weaker home improvement demand, soft consumer spending and lower storm activity weighed on results. This contrast is explained by the fact that James Hardie and Home Depot serve different segments of the housing market. Fiber cement siding is used in new home construction and exterior projects that track builder activity, while Home Depot primarily serves homeowner renovations and discretionary projects that depend on housing turnover and financing, although it has recently expanded into professional contractors.

Valley National Bank provides a $125M bridge loan for a multifamily development in Flatbush, Brooklyn – Clipper Equity will use the financing to retire a prior $105M construction loan and $3M of Be Aviv debt for its 296-unit project at 2360 Bedford Avenue (CommercialObserver)

BHI provides a $120M bridge loan for a 227-unit multifamily project in Flatbush, Brooklyn – Clipper Equity will use the financing to retire a prior $95M construction loan from BHI and a $10M Be Aviv loan for the development at 2359 Bedford Avenue (CommercialObserver)

$182B AUM asset manager Artisan Partners acquires Grandview Property Partners to expand into private real estate – The deal adds a $940M portfolio with 14M SF across industrial, office and residential assets (Bisnow)

Brookfield buys the 1,003-room Sheraton Phoenix Downtown in Phoenix, AZ for an undisclosed price – Blackstone sold the 33-story hotel that Marriott last sold for $268M in 2020 and JLL represented the seller (ConnectCRE)

Mori Trust buys the Equinox Hotel at 35 Hudson Yards in New York, NY for $541M – Related Companies and Oxford Properties sold the bottom 38 floors totaling 490,000 SF that include the 212-room hotel along with office and retail space (CommercialObserver)

Pantzer Properties buys 393-unit multifamily property at 1 Main Street in Miramar, FL for $161M – Related Group and Rockpoint sold the 715,453 SF building completed last yearr CBRE Multifamily Capital provided a $102.4M acquisition loan (CommercialObserver)

Highwoods Properties buys 24-story 415,000 SF office tower at 600 South Tryon Street in Charlotte, NC for $223M – Lincoln Property Company sold Legacy Union 6Hundred delivered earlier this year and Highwoods is planning $8.5M of upgrades to stabilize the asset (TheRealDeal)

Blue Vista, UBS and Extra Space launch a $600M self-storage venture – The partnership aims to assemble the largest privately owned self-storage platform in the U.S (PERE)

Peachtree Group commits up to $200M to The Briad Group’s multi-brand convenience store strategy – Funding will support 2–4 new Circle K–anchored 7,000 SF centers annually with fuel, retail, and major QSR chains (IREI)