WASHINGTON — Faced with a dramatic decline in the number of Americans moving to Florida, community boosters are promoting the Sunshine State as a cluster of research and technology, not just a balmy place to live.

The rebranding reflects attempts to attract businesses and college graduates while reviving the stream of retirees and home buyers who once poured into Florida and nurtured economic growth.

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The nation’s banks, while still clearly unenthusiastic about commercial real estate, are finally acknowledging that CRE markets have hit a hard rocky bottom. A handful even says they are re-loaded and ready to resume lending.

That is largely the view expressed in fourth quarter bank earnings statements and conference calls, including the nation’s nine largest banks. While their comments anecdotally substantiate that the worst of the recession for CRE has past, it’s also clear that many don’t see better days just around the corner.

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After losing more than $10 billion on real-estate investments, Calpers, the giant California pension fund, is returning to the property market with a new strategy and fewer investment managers, seeking steady, modest gains rather than blockbuster returns.

After investing relatively small amounts in real estate during the past two years, the $226 billion California Public Employees’ Retirement System is gearing up to commit as much as $2 billion to property deals in 2011, the fund said. Calpers will be making those investments with less help from some big-name managers, including BlackRock Inc., Hines Interests and Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., which it removed from overseeing parts of its portfolio in recent months.

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U.S. companies optimistic about the economy plan to hire more workers in coming months, a quarterly survey released Monday found, another signal that the jobs market is turning up.

The fourth-quarter poll of 84 companies by the National Association for Business Economics found 42% expected to increase jobs in the next six months. That is up from 29% in the first quarter of 2010. Only 7% of companies in the latest survey predict they will shed jobs in the coming six months, down from 23% at the start of last year.

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The multi-family and commercial real estate industry is an important part of the US Economy, and its members will play a leading role in the country’s performance in 2011 and beyond.  Some of these companies will be leaders, while others may have less extensive-or even a less positive-influence.  The each company will play is determined in large part by corporate culture, staff capabilities and strategic approach move forward.

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Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal are increasingly optimistic about the pace of the recovery, predicting the U.S. will grow at better than a 3.2% annual rate in each quarter this year.

“The U.S. economy appears to have successfully navigated the adjustment from a recovery driven primarily from economic stimulus and inventory rebuilding to one driven by private domestic demand and rising exports,” said economists at Wells Fargo & Co. “Three percent growth looks pretty good, particularly with housing stuck in low gear.”

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If the third and fourth quarters of last year are any indication, then deal volume is returning to the commercial real estate investment sales markets.

According to CoStar COMPs, sales volume for commercial property nearly doubled from about $22 billion of deals in the first quarter of 2010 to almost $36 billion in the fourth quarter – a number that will likely increase as CoStar finalizes its quarterly tally and confirms the flurry of deals signed at year-end and those that surface in public records.

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Orange County’s hotel-tax collections have improved yet again compared with last year, a sign of continued progress for Orlando’s tourism industry.

The county said it collected $13.2 million from its tourist-development tax for the month of November, up 16.8 percent compared with November 2009. That’s the 10th consecutive month of year-over-year increases for the tax, which is charged on short-term rentals, mostly hotels and motels.

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Big U.S. companies have cleaned up their balance sheets and, flush with cash, appear open to using it in 2011 on factories, stores and even hiring.

“We preserved cash” over the past few years, said Jim Flaws, chief financial officer of Corning Inc. “Now we’re turning around and feeling comfortable about our outlook and spending it.”

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