Note 14 - Pandemic and Macroeconomics |
3 Months Ended | ||
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Mar. 31, 2025 | |||
Notes to Financial Statements | |||
Effect of Covid-19 Pandemic [Text Block] |
The following discussion is intended to provide shareholders with certain information regarding the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s business and management’s efforts to respond to those impacts. Unless otherwise specified, the statistical and other information regarding the Company’s properties and tenants are estimates based on information currently available to the Company, may change, potentially significantly, going forward, and may not be indicative of the actual residual impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s business, operations, cash flows and financial condition for the three months ended March 31, 2025 and future periods.
The COVID-19 pandemic has also adversely impacted, and may continue to impact adversely, the timeliness of local government in granting required approvals, as state and local staff charged with processing our subdivision applications all postponed activity due to work-from-home transitions. Accordingly, COVID-19 has caused, and may continue to cause, the completion of important stages in our efforts to secure entitlements to be delayed. The pandemic has also resulted in a significant shift toward commercial acceptance of remote working and telemedicine which may adversely impact our occupancy rate and average rate per square foot, although medical office has faced less of a challenge from work-from-home shifts.
We are affected by the fiscal and monetary policies of the United States Government and its agencies, including the policies of the Federal Reserve, which regulates the supply of money and credit in the United States. The combination of elevated interest rates and persistent inflation (or the perception that any of these events may continue) have contributed to continued weakness in commercial real estate markets, including in those real estate markets in which we operate. Changes in fiscal and monetary policies are beyond our control and are difficult to predict. Although the Federal Reserve decreased the federal funds rate multiple times in 2024, the rate continues to be elevated and there can be no assurance that the rate will continue to decrease or that it will not be increased in 2025 and beyond. At its most recent meeting in March 2025, the Federal Open Market Committee of the Federal Reserve opted to keep rates steady, citing persistent inflation risks and economic uncertainties, including the impact of new import tariffs. While lower market rates and increased capital markets liquidity supports commercial real estate property transactions and values, regulated lending institutions are adjusting their business models to increase capital requirements for direct loans to real estate and thus continue to be constrained in providing capital for commercial real estate properties. Changes in the federal funds rate as well as the other policies of the Federal Reserve affect interest rates, which have a significant impact on our financial condition.
The extent of the continuing impact of these public health and macroeconomic risks on the Company's operational and financial performance and ultimately its Net Asset Value, will depend on current and future developments, including the residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the extent to which persistently high interest rates continue to have an adverse impact on the real estate industry or have a recessionary effect generally.
As a result of the foregoing developments, we are unable to determine what the ultimate impact of general economic conditions will be on our timeline for seeking entitlements and selling properties, and ultimately on the amount proceeds and distributions from those sales.
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