real estate

July 27, 2023

Water Damage Is a Leading Cause of Commercial Real Estate Claims. How Sensor Technologies Help Mitigate These Claims

Commercial real estate insureds know how painful water damage claims can be.   These losses can happen suddenly from a pipe burst after freezing temperatures or they can happen gradually over time from improper installation or deterioration from aging infrastructure.  Water damage is one of the most common causes of property loss and is it one of the...

July 7, 2023

2023 Commercial Property Insurance Midyear Market Outlook

The last several years have seen the commercial property insurance market progressively harden, evidenced by ongoing rate increases over the past 22 consecutive quarters. Such rate hikes showed some signs of stagnation throughout 2022 by largely remaining within single digits, according to insurance experts. However, this moderation didn’t last in 2023, as rates surged by...

June 22, 2023

Those New Office Building Amenities Come With Legal Risks

For the past 12 to 18 months, office building owners have been energetically implementing new tactics to attract tenants back to their buildings as the pandemic becomes less impactful.  One growing trend among owners is hiring outside vendors to provide added-value building amenities for tenants, such as conference room services, fitness centers with nutritionists, and...

June 7, 2023

Hard Market Conditions Intensify in Commercial Property

Hard market conditions of rate hikes coupled with tightening terms have intensified for June 1 renewals in commercial property, as carriers prevail in a “seller’s market” where new capacity remains scarce, sources told this publication. Even clean accounts in the admitted space are seeing rate increases of 15% year on year, while loss-hit accounts in...

May 25, 2023

Complex Property Risks Create Challenging Market

Economic, social and environmental trends are combining to create significant risks and challenges for property owners and their insurers. Across industries, from manufacturing to real estate to healthcare, some of the same themes are present. These include changing valuations of physical assets and higher replacement costs, supply chain issues, and contingent time element exposures. Supply...

May 18, 2023

Commercial Property Rates Increase, Cyber Rates Moderate

Commercial property and casualty insurance rates rose 8.8% in the first quarter of 2023 (up slightly from 8.0% in the previous quarter) as property outpaced all other lines at an average of 20.4%, according to the latest Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB) market survey. As the market entered its 22nd consecutive quarter of...

April 25, 2023

Will Luxe Amenities Get Workers Back to the Office? Owners Say, ‘Yes’

The house party is ending for many office-bound workers — and, as a result, the office experience is getting a lot more fun.  The push to get workers back to their desks resulted in a so-called “flight to quality” — tenants demanding highly amenitized, Class A office spaces. In response, landlords upped the ante like...

April 3, 2023

Growing Construction Costs Driving Commercial Property Coverage Gap

Growing costs for construction materials and labor could be driving commercial properties to be undervalued by as much as 30% for underwriting purposes, according to Tüv Süd Global Risk Consultants Corp. A disconnect between reported values and actual values can result in a coverage gap for a commercial policyholder. From November 2021-November 2022, the cost of...

March 30, 2023

Wildfire Preparedness Steps for Businesses

Wildfires are unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fires resulting from lightning and human causes, such as campfires, downed utility wires and cigarette butts. Direct flames, radiant heat from nearby burning plants or structures, and flying embers from wildfires can pose risks to businesses, homes and people. Wildfires can have a profound impact on local economies as...

March 28, 2023

CEOs Want Employees Back In Office—But Can We Prove Buildings Are Safe?

With COVID-19 vaccination efforts fully ramped up, U.S. employers are accelerating their plans to bring employees back to the office. Recently, PwC’s US Remote Work Survey found 75% of executives anticipate at least half their employees will be back in the office this month. While remote work has proven to be successful by many measures, few leaders...