As 2009 came to a close, international and Italian real estate operators found their balance sheets telling of a difficult year of stasis. But the news has begun to change now, and the word "recovery" is starting to be heard as often as the word “crisis.” This year of changes saw radical transformations in the market and its dynamics, no doubt, and even in some of its main players, and the sector has taken new directions that will never again become as distorted as those seen in past years. Talk of recovery is in the air, even if the recovery is sure to be long and difficult.There already exist financial instruments and actors that are capable of making investments - their inactivity is dictated less by a shortage of opportunities than by the psychological aftershock of a year of immobility. From now on, prospective investments will be subjected to careful scrutiny, with every project and operation being meticulously evaluated in terms of quality and practicability - this is the new direction for every facet of the market. Businesses will still invest in marketing and events, of course, but final decisions will be weighed much more carefully and based on a tangible sense of utility.
The next edition of EIRE (Expo Italia Real Estate, from June 8th to 10th in Milan) is subject to the same trends, of course, and its organization and promotion has already begun. For our part, we are well aware that the fair itself and the commercial relationships that support it cannot be considered automatic, and that our task as organizers is to commun... [MORE]
Last year will be remembered for the burst of one of the worst economic and financial crisis ever, which hit national economies on a global scale. Within this scenario Italian GDP decreased by -1% in 2008 and is expected to drop by -2% in 2009, making this recession the longest and, probably, the worst since World War II. The Milan real estate market reaction to the crisis was different in the occupier market compared to the investment market. 
