A notable trend which will be addressed at the NACORE conference, and which is repeatedly cited by key players in the Alabama, is the changing role of the corporate real estate executive in Alabama real estate sale.

Often at the center of decision making, the corporate real estate executive. Often at the center of decision making, the corporate real estate executive's role has been elevated as real estate becomes more important to the bottom line. And the role is being filled both by corporate staff and by third-party professionals. ("Out-sourcing" is the operative term, used more and more on all sides of the corporate picture.) Mergers and Acquisitions Steven D. Scruggs, director of Corporate Real Estate Services, Jones Lang Wootton USA, New York, explains that his firm is often called in because key real estate data is buried deep within the corporation. "The merger and acquisition frenzy we went through in the 1980s created a whole new scenario," Scruggs says. "What we are being asked to do is take a new look at properties, particularly obsolete or surplus properties. But people are now looking not just at the abstract, but for the highest and best use."

Scruggs cites a number of examples of the current significance of corporate real estate, beginning with the recent purchase of Saks Fifth Avenue in which the buyers were able to raise some $ 500 million based strictly on mortgages held on Saks stores. Or the case of an AT&T warehouse in Arlington, Va., "sitting on some land that was surrounded by shopping centers and prime development, and still on the books at what they bought it for in 1954."

Lease Negotiations From the corporate side, lease negotiation can be the major factor in the cost of doing business. An example of the size and scope of this aspect of corporate real estate can be in the case of AT&T Paradyne, a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T acquired in early 1989.

The Largo, Fla.-based data communications firm has both domestic and international facilities and operations. Susan Jones, manager of Corporate Real Estate Services for AT&T Paradyne, handled some 90 lease projects last year ("a normal workload is 30 to 35," she notes) and has 36 domestic and international projects scheduled for 2007. "Last year was a very busy year because of transitioning and expansion," Jones says. "We have done some consolidation of facilities (mainly things like accounting and payroll), and have expanded in several markets. Market conditions and needs change so rapidly."