The week started with an earthquake and it’s ending with a hurricane, as Irene nears the East Coast in what could potentially be the strongest storm in the last two decades.

The sale of houses in some stage of foreclosure accounted for 31 percent of all residential sales during 2Q11. The Obama administration is mulling plans to help the housing market. And despite Warren Buffett’s $5 billion investment, the Dow was still down yesterday.

The Phoenix office market continues its march back to recovery, this time led by the $102.5 million purchase of the PetSmart corporate headquarters by Cole Real Estate Investments.

Jones Lang LaSalle has won yet another assignment, emerging victorious form a heated bid for a facilities-management contract for the Principal Financial Group’s 4.3 million-square-foot portfolio of employee-occupied properties.

If there’s one constant in Manhattan real estate, it’s that there’s always a deal going on. This week, it’s the news that 1552 Broadway in Times Square has changed hands for $136.6 million.

Clarion Partners acquired 13 Class A industrial properties from ProLogis for $118 million, focused mostly on Midwest distribution centers.

It’s been busy over at Beech Street Capital. In the last few days, the multi-family lender has closed three financing deals that total a combined price of $78 million.

The Congressional Budget Office said the longer-range forecast is for the budget deficit is better than expected. The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported its House Price Index edged up 0.9 percent in June. And Wall Street was ended positive yesterday, but investors are waiting for Ben Bernanke’s speech on Friday.

Read the articles from the August 2011 print edition of Commercial Property Executive magazine.

Robert Brunswick, chairman & CEO of Buchanan Street Partners, spoke with editor-in-chief Suzann D. Silverman about leadership in real estate and his efforts to inspire and train the industry’s future leaders.