6D — December 24, 2021 - January 20, 2022 — Year in Review 2021 — M id A tlantic Real Estate Journal
www.MAREJ.com
Y ear in R eview 2021
By Neil Andrew Stein, Esquire, Kaplin, Stewart, Meloff, Reiter & Stein Was 2021 Good Or Bad? Your Perception May Be The Reality
“M
continue to roll. Nevertheless, we should not lose sight of issues that we can never seem to resolve. There is a shortage of meaningful af- fordable housing, a balancing of environmental protection with the need for self-sustaining energy resources, a fair and un- derstandable tax code, a living wage that outpaces inflation, and finally, an end to political acrimony. There is no doubt that COVID has taken far too many lives. For those of us fortunate to live through it, some degree of uncertainty will prevail. Policy- makers, such as governments
continued from page 4D Northeastern Pennsylvania has Record Year country, plans are in place to deliver more than 20 million s/f in the next two years. So, keep an eye out for exciting announcements that will be made in 2022! Penn ’ s Nor theas t i s Northeastern Pennsylvania’s regional economic develop- ment agency, dedicated to attracting quality employers to Carbon, Columbia, Lacka- wanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Schuylkill, and Wayne counties. Penn’s Northeast serves as the single regional point of contact for businesses looking to relocate to or expand within Northeastern Pennsylvania, functioning as a liaison be- tween local development part- ners, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and businesses seeking new facilities. John L. Augustine III is president/CEO of Penn’s Northeast. MAREJ and central banks, can use their policy tools, including targeted spending and tax adjustments, to try to alleviate the effects of uncertainty. But uncertainty about policy choices may also contribute to uncertainty. For that reason, looking too far into the future may be a fruit- less endeavor. There is always uncertainty about the future – but large increases in the un- certainty of the kind that we are now experiencing are thought to confound the ability to form a confident view about the future. This means that it is harder to make these forward-looking decisions. Covid-19 is associ- ated with a huge increase in uncertainty about the future. It combines non-economic uncer- tainty, economic uncertainty, and policy uncertainty. As the saying goes, ‘Predic- tion is very difficult, especially about the future.’ (The source of this quote is uncertain: it has been variously attributed to US baseball legend Yogi Berra, Danish physicist and Nobel laureate Danish Niels Bohr, and film producer Samuel Goldwyn). Neil Andrew Stein, Es- quire is a principal of Kap- lin, Stewart, Meloff, Reiter & Stein and a member of the Land Use, Zoning & Devel- opment Department. MAREJ
ove along, noth- ing to see here.” Officer Barbrady
phes, the imminent invasions of the Ukraine and Taiwan, and the seemingly interminable wait for the next episode of Ted Lasso. The optimist will cite the ever-burgeoning real estate market, soaring stock prices, historically low-interest rates, the Federal Reserve staying well ahead of the next possible recession, and the possibility of an Eagles playoff game. Therefore, you either try your hardest to avoid watching the news or make so much money that you are unaffected by any of the bad stuff. Either way, 2021 presented as many twists and turns as a good Agatha
Christie novel. At some point in my real es- tate law class, I explain to my students the basic causes of the 2008 great recession. However, I always need to remind myself that many of them were about ten years old at the time. As a result, the same question in- variably pops up, “...when will it happen again?” Most economic cycles last about one year on the bad side and five years on the good side. There are exceptional cycles, and we are clearly in one now. Absent something di- sastrous politically, militarily, or medically, I see no reason why the good times should not
f rom South Park. C omme n - t a r i e s l i k e this one, i.e., a retrospective of 2021, are often ubiqui- tous and con-
Neil A. Stein
trarian. The particulars are dependent upon one’s point of view. For example, a pessimist will point to the next COVID variant, inflation, labor short - ages, supply chain catastro-
Firmly Rooted in the Law and in the Community We are well grounded in every facet of real estate law, from acquisition to construction. We are committed to serving the needs of our clients and our communities.
Contact: NEIL A. STEIN • nstein@kaplaw.com 910 Harvest Drive, Blue Bell, PA 19422-0765 • 610-941-2469 • kaplaw.com Other Offices: • Cherry Hill, NJ 856-675-1550 • Philadelphia, PA 215-567-3120 Kaplin Stewart A t t o r ne y s a t Law
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software