Low interest rates, healthy consumer spending and strong e-commerce are forming good conditions for industrial and logistics real estate growth in 2017, says JLL, an investment management firm that offers real estate services. Potential investment in infrastructure and continued company expansion are also expected to fuel demand for warehouses and distribution centers despite global economic uncertainty.

Will the amount of cargo transiting the Panama Canal do so on fewer vessels?

Distribution centers near the nation's top seaports are bursting with consumer goods and other cargo - and that's before the Panama Canal extension opens next spring. Distribution center and warehouse occupancy levels have reached historic highs, while expensive construction and labor costs keep new development sparse in many seaport industrial real estate markets.