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Research shows high demand for hand tools
Total home improvement dollars increased by 7% when comparing the 12 months ended July 2012 with the previous 12 months, according to consumer research from The NPD Group.
The units of home improvement items sold grew less than 2%, according to the Port Washington, N.Y.-based research firm.
Much of the unit growth in the home improvement industry was driven by hand tools, the second largest segment based on unit sales after storage and organization. Hand tools saw an 8% increase in units between August 2011 and July 2012.
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Inland raises $1.1 billion of investor capital
Oak Brook, Ill. -- Inland Diversified Real Estate Trust announced it has raised over $1.1 billion of investor capital, which will be used to continue the company’s acquisitions of a diversified portfolio of commercial real estate properties.
“We believe that we have built an outstanding portfolio of stable, performing commercial real estate assets with very high occupancy, generating sustainable distributions for our investors,” said Barry Lazarus, president and COO of Inland Diversified.