Insight by Interview
	REPUTATION MANAGEMENT

A well-known international law firm with a real estate practice sought to determine the severity and intensity of the current credit crunch – and possible recession – on commercial sales of real estate, both in the United States and overseas. To continue its leadership role in this practice area, the firm needed to uncover whether commercial real estate professionals felt that real estate was overvalued in the U.S. and in various countries in the world, and whether they expected selling and buying activity to strengthen or weaken in the next 24 to 36 months.

The Pert Group conducted online interviews of between 300 and 400 real estate professionals in the United States. The respondents included current law firm clients, contacts and visitors to the firm’s Web site.

• Included in the sample design were principals, brokers, investment managers, lenders, commercial mortgage bankers, title insurers, contractors, CPAs, money managers, architects, investors and engineers.
• The survey appeared to be part of the firm’s Web site, when in reality it was a link to the research firm. The law firm recruited respondents only through email to the Web site.

Overall, 59 percent of the real estate executives and buyers/sellers interviewed believed real estate in the U.S. was overvalued, while 32 percent said it was fairly valued – the lowest percentage ever recorded on the firm’s series of studies. Similarly, 65 percent expected the real estate market to further weaken, and only 12 percent thought it would strengthen. These results confirmed what many believed.

The results of the study were sent to major media outlets, resulting in broad-based coverage in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, among others, which cemented the law firm’s reputation as a leading real estate authority.