The Four Phases of the Real Estate Cycle By Ian Formigle on July 15, 2016 Similar to the broader economy, commercial real estate is a cyclical market. There are four phases to the real estate cycle: Recovery Expansion Hyper Supply Recession The four phases move in a continuous wave pattern that looks like this: Image by Glenn R. Miller, PhD. Depicted above is a single cycle. The end of the recession phase connects to the beginning of the recovery phase to form the continuous wave pattern. As we begin, I want to give special thanks to our friend Dr. Glenn Mueller of the University of Denver for his thought leadership in this space. Any investor who wishes to do a deeper dive on real estate cycles is advised to check out Dr. Mueller’s outstanding work. Understanding the progression of each phase within the cycle is critical in being able to identify investment opportunities , as well as risks that can arise, with heightened sensit...