BY LIZ WITBECK
After a few years of a sluggish economy, the
commercial real estate market is making a
comeback. Local real estate experts in the Glens
Falls area say now is a great time to buy or sell a
property in the region.
Mark Levack, owner of Levack Real Estate
in Glens Falls, with experience in commercial
sales, said current sectors of the commercial real
estate economy are experiencing gains, while
other sections are still struggling.
Bob Sears, an associate broker with Prudential
Blake Realty, specializing in commercial
realty, said that the past three to five years in
the area have not been good for the real estate
industry. People were too concerned about the
economy. Yet recently there has been an upswing.
“In the past six months, things have started
to turn,” said Sears.
“In these past six months I am seeing people
doing $350,000 to $750,000 contracts, which I
have not seen in three or four years,” he said.
Sears sees this as a sign that there are more
small business owners willing to take the risk
and buy and lease properties in Glens Falls. For
years, there were only large business transactions
being handled.
Peter Hoffman of Glen Street Associates in
Glens Falls, which handles numerous commercial
properties, said the year has been a busy one.
He said he has been in the Glens Falls real estate
market for 13 years and this is the strongest year
he has experienced.
Levack has noticed that more people outside
the region are forming an interest in Glens Falls.
“There’s a marked increase in the number of out
of state investors.”
Levack attributes this to the number of notable
projects that are in place in the area, like Just Beverages, a new beverage facility at the
former site of St. Alphonsus Church.
Low interest rates and climbing stock market
prices have helped ease people’s worries and get
them back into the real estate market.
“Interest rates are very attractive right now,”
said Levack.
The agents said the real estate market will
continue to make positive gains for both buyers
and sellers.
“I feel more confident at this stage of the game
than I did three years ago,” said Levack. “We are
on the right track for a positive economy.”
Said Hoffman, “There’s a lot of optimism in the
market and people are feeling really good about
the market right now.”
He said a contributing factor is that real estate
prices in Saratoga Springs have risen and
people are looking elsewhere for location and
investment.
According to Hoffman, prices in Glens Falls
are 50-100 percent less than Saratoga. For both
residential and commercial property, people are
finding more value in Glens Falls.
“I can’t recommend any place in the Capital
District any higher than Glens Falls,” he said.