Companies are no longer shying away from discussing the theft problem that has infected itself like a pandemic virus across the board. And still the judicial systems on a local level are having nothing to do with protecting businesses from these crime units that go unpunished.
These losses are ultimately going to find their way into the cost of goods, which has already, in most cases, doubled or tripled over the last 3 years. Take, for instance, lumber, which has tripled in the last few years; paper goods have tripled; and the numbers continue to go on to make it more difficult for first-time buyers and Gen Z buyers to put away enough cash to cover their down payment.
Many of these larger retail stores are actually closing locations because of the theft problem. Foot Locker alone is closing 545 stores across its brands nationwide in 2026. That’s not only going to hurt the consumer, it’s going to hurt the job market. Even Walgreens has announced that it is closing 150 stores. The loss at such drugstores from theft is enormous. So many of the shelves have plexiglass shields on them to safeguard against the crooks who come in and carry out what they want.
In the case of the most recent report from Lowe’s, loss from theft has grown from $315 million in 2013 to $999 million in 2023.
And Target reported that its second quarter theft loss hit nearly $220 million. Projected out, that translates into $900 million in hard losses. The trajectory from theft has escalated at Target from $753 million in the prior year to where it is shooting toward $1 billion in losses for the current year.
Commercial Real Estate
The other dark cloud hanging over this market is the concern over the contraction of the commercial real estate sector.
Some of the cities suffering from this commercial real estate blight are San Francisco, Seattle, Denver and Minneapolis.
The commercial crisis may have begun with the pandemic, but it escalated with the transition of employees into becoming hybrid employees.
The concern over commercial real estate stems from a number of factors:
An emerging remote/hybrid workforce
Decrease in property values and real estate taxes
Decline in cities’ value
Inability to rent commercial office space
Increase in office delinquency rate from 1.5% to 4.5%
Decrease in demand for commercial space
If you have any questions about this information or title insurance, please contact Ralph Aponte: 732.914.1400.
Counsellors Title Agency, www.counsellorstitle.net, founded in 1996, is one of New Jersey’s most respected title agencies, serving all 21 New Jersey counties with title insurance, clearing title, escrow, tidelands searches, and closing and settlement services for commercial or industrial properties, waterfront properties and marinas, condominiums, townhouses or residential single-family homes. Counsellors Title also features its own Attorney Settlement Assistance Program™ [ASAP], which is an individual resource customized to fit the needs specifically of real estate attorneys, including, Documentation, Preparation, Disbursement of Funds, Attendance at Closing, HUD Preparation or Post-Closing Matters.
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