Who better to answer the question of whether we're in a recession than executives who invest in and make loans to commercial real estate projects?

At a recent quarterly meeting, the Real Estate Investment Advisory Council conducted a Jeopardy-like question-and-answer session about their business and the economy in general.

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REIAC is a nonprofit national organization founded in Los Angeles 18 years ago. The Atlanta branch was established in 1994.

The 160 members attending the meeting at the Westin Buckhead hotel used remote keypads to punch in their answers to 14 questions. The 15 seconds allowed for each answer included pop music reflecting the uncertain economic times, such as the Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want."

The consensus was that commercial real estate values have declined 5 percent to 10 percent and will drop further.

Nearly half the executives surveyed said we are now in a recession but that it won't be prolonged. One-third, however, believe the recession will be a deep one.