Editorial

The economic crisis has found developers, investors, lenders unprepared for the downturn. Some investors and developers started to panic as capital flows froze and the transaction activities dramatically reduced. They did not know what to do; they still do not know what to do. Some of them just sit and wait for the recovery of the market, as their most attractive investments have been purchased, just prior to the crises, with a large leverage, while some are changing their mentality and attitude, focusing on the real needs and requirements of the market and not only on their spreadsheets, cash flows and profits. In some countries, where the market was drugged by easy-to-finance projects, very often far from the real needs of the demands, the crisis acted as a sort of “detox”. Easy credit and poor due diligence created a hypothetical demand which, in turn, led to a massive over-supply and too many homes and commercial properties were built. They just built. Not to respond to real demands of the market but in the belief that demand would come. So now it is time to change, it is time for the players of the market to change their attitude. Enough time has passed since the crisis started for the players in the market to recognise the need to adapt to the new reality and not just wait for better times to return.