We have been building there for 5 years now and its pretty cool... we have enough lots bought to build 13 new homes from now to next summer.. so lets all keep our fingers crossed that the market favors us who take massive risk in spec construction.WE built one in the historic district 7 New st.. and from what I could find we had the only New construction in the super high end historic district.. we sold that off market for cash for far more than we dreamed.. so that was a good one for us. but scarcity and world class city.. if someone wants something there they will pay for it..  

You can be a part of a retail bonanza with the proper retail estate guidance. 

Note: My agent wanted me to start at $110k - so remember: realtors can be "retail-minded".

There is a massive shift in the way consumers shop and their expectations of retail providers happening right now.

I personally stick to funds with conservative leverage (65% LTV or less), first position only, nonowner occupied, loan in only nonjudicial states to limit foreclosure costs, etc.And you invest in multifamily but there are plenty of other asset classes including retail, office, self storage, etc. 

We are looking at an applicant with massive loans (130k student loan and it's a low paying major).

Business plan is to vacate all units and perform massive renovations to all buildings(5) and apartments.

Leasing multiple units at a time is how you scale up and become massively profitable.

Underwrite your retail rent component (if any) to zero, nonlocal sponsors are hard, and "weird" deals are hard (ground leases, scattered site deals, etc).  

Sometimes people are paying retail, sometimes not.