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Power-Panel
Conference CoverageFeaturesMultifamilyStudent Housing

InterFace Power Panel Discusses Student Housing Sector Resilience Amid Tariff Fears, Potential Economic Slowdown 

by Taylor Williams

By Katie Sloan AUSTIN, TEXAS — The 17th annual InterFace Student Housing conference, held April 9-11 at the JW Marriott in Austin, Texas, saw more than 1,500 student housing industry executives gather for educational sessions and networking. The conference’s first full day kicked off on April 10 with the ‘Power Panel,’ which brought together a group of high-level executives from several of the top companies in the sector to discuss their outlook for the year ahead.  Moderator Peter Katz, executive managing director with Institutional Property Advisors, began the discussion by highlighting a few growing concerns in the current economic environment. Chief among them were the potential impact of global tariffs on equity and development in student housing and the possibility of an economic slowdown or even an impending recession.  Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. Still, the student housing sector has proven time and time again that it is a resilient asset class. “If we look back at the global financial crisis and COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve witnessed that the student housing sector is pandemic- and recession-resistant,” said Katz.  “Institutional …

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CaliforniaConference CoverageFeaturesSeniors HousingWesternWestern Feature Archive

Foundation Has Been Laid for Seniors Housing Investment Sales to Flourish in 2025, Says InterFace Panel

by John Nelson

LOS ANGELES — Dan Baker, director of capital markets for JLL, says the seniors housing and care industry doesn’t need to speculate on whether the market rebound is real or perceived because the numbers tell the story.  “I think last year saw the most announced seniors housing transactions ever in a calendar year, not necessarily the most dollar volume,” said Baker during a recent investment panel discussion at InterFace Seniors Housing West in Los Angeles. Baker cited the lack of larger portfolios trading hands as the reason for the modest dollar volume in transaction activity in 2024. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. According to research firm MSCI, property and portfolio sales in the seniors housing and care space totaled $13.2 billion in 2024 compared with $10.9 billion in 2023, a year-over-year increase of 21 percent. That’s still far below the $20.7 billion in deal volume notched in 2021. The data is based on independent reports of sales $2.5 million and above. One compelling trend noted by Baker is the tremendous growth in net operating …

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Austin-Retail-Mixed-Use-Panel
Conference CoverageMarket ReportsRetailTexasTexas Market Reports

InterFace Panel: Retail, Restaurant Operators Targeting Austin MSA Must Temper Expectations

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams AUSTIN, TEXAS — On the surface, Austin has everything that expanding retail and restaurant operators could possibly want: youth, density, culture, high-paying jobs. Yet when these users begin scouting and diving into the state capital’s retail real estate market, they often find that entering or expanding there is much easier said than done. Skyrocketing home prices, increased vehicular congestion and limited infrastructure outside the urban core are just the most visible ways in which Austin has been somewhat victimized by its own torrid growth over the past 10 to 15 years. And each of those variables factors into retail site selection and contributes to the challenges of adding new retail and restaurant space to the market. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. Simply put, if there are no rooftops, roads, parking spaces and utilities, there can be no new retail development. Such is the story in some of Austin’s more remote suburbs, though few doubt that those preliminary requirements for retail growth will eventually be delivered. But there is also the issue of raw …

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San-Antonio-CRE-Outlook-Industrial-Panel
Conference CoverageIndustrialMarket ReportsTexasTexas Market Reports

InterFace Panel: Automotive Users, Data Centers Drive Demand, Vie for Power in San Antonio Industrial Market

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams SAN ANTONIO — Automotive parts manufacturers and data center operators both represent major sources of demand for industrial space in San Antonio, as well as major consumers of electrical resources. Both sets of users are increasingly prioritizing access to cheap, abundant electricity in their site selection and other real estate decisions. But that’s about where their similarities end. For the automotive industry has been a source of job growth and retention in the San Antonio area for decades, whereas data centers are a relatively new phenomenon that offer minimal contributions to local employment. And in between the two on the spectrum of industrial end users are third-party distribution and logistics companies, which really represent the market’s bread-and-butter tenant. But these groups typically don’t have such taxing power demands. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. For data center developers and users, the need and demand for affordable, plentiful power is nothing new. And the fact that Texas has long had its own deregulated power grid has contributed mightily to the state landing many of those …

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Texas-Affordable-Workforce-Housing-Brokerage-Panel
Affordable HousingConference CoverageMarket ReportsMultifamilyTexasTexas Market Reports

InterFace Panel: Texas Affordable Housing Sales Volume Should Rebound Marginally in 2025

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams DALLAS — As is the case for many commercial asset classes and markets in 2025, there is an expectation of elevated deal volume for investment sales of affordable housing properties in Texas. But brokers in that space caution that the rebound will likely be marginal and is not necessarily indicative of ideal market conditions taking hold. A quintet of panelists broke down this notion and others at the InterFace Texas Affordable & Workforce Housing conference on Feb. 13 at the Westin Galleria Dallas hotel. Mary Ann Bennett, senior managing director at BBG Real Estate Services, moderated the discussion on investment sales activity. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. Panelist Michael Furrow, senior vice president of affordable housing at commercial finance firm BWE, took the audience of 200-plus back in time to illustrate just how quiet the past two years had been. He did so by providing statistics on affordable housing sales for Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) between 2021 — when multifamily rents and sales prices were peaking across the board — and 2024, when they …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesRetail

EEE: Emotion Is the Key to Achieving ROI with Today’s Entertainment Options

by Kristin Harlow

Gerald Divaris, chairman and CEO of Divaris Group of Companies and a panelist at last week’s Entertainment Experience Evolution (EEE) conference, produced by France Media’s Shopping Center Business and InterFace Conference Group, has a Shakespearean take on today’s retail environment. It’s that all the (retail) world’s a stage. “Retail is essentially entertainment,” he told a crowd of 500 attendees during the Leading Retail Landlords Panel at EEE, which was held Feb. 25-26 at the J.W. Marriott LA Live. “Otherwise, you’d be buying on Amazon.” Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. Divaris expanded upon this notion, citing that even supermarkets have entertaining “stations,” TJ Maxx provides the opportunity to treasure hunt and Barnes & Noble has made a major comeback by doing little more than allowing guests to thumb through books. Panel moderator Nick Egelanian, president of SiteWorks, noted much of the current retail experience can be divided into two categories, though it may not be an even split. There are the items consumers want to buy quickly and easily (and arguably cheaply) online, and …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesNorth CarolinaSoutheastSoutheast Feature ArchiveStudent Housing

InterFace Panel: Slow and Steady Wins the Race for Student Housing Preleasing, Rent Growth in 2025

by John Nelson

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve, the 2025-2026 academic year moved further into focus. What can the industry expect to see this year from a preleasing perspective? Are rents expected to keep growing? And by how much? All of these questions and more were discussed during a kick-off panel at the 2024 LeaseCon/TurnCon conference by InterFace Conference Group, which took place this past December in Charlotte. As of Dec. 3, student housing properties across the country were 36.6 percent preleased on average — a 1.3 percent decline from rates seen at the same time in 2023, according to moderator Charlie Matthews, founder and CEO of data provider College House.  Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. Of markets across the United States, the Southeast led the way with the highest preleasing percentage at 43.5 percent. Asking rents have congruently grown by 4.9 percent across the country as of early December, according to Matthews, with average rents at $990. Leading the way in rent growth for the 2025-2026 academic year …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesGeorgiaMultifamilyMultifamily & Affordable Housing Feature ArchiveSoutheastSoutheast Feature Archive

Stickiness of Renter Sets Build-to-Rent Sector Apart from Traditional Multifamily, Says InterFace Panel

by Kristin Harlow

ATLANTA — When considering a single-family, build-to-rent (BTR) development or acquisition, the main priority of the developer or investor is to focus on finding a place where people want to live, said Zach Persky, vice president of acquisitions for Quinn Residences. Access to jobs, retail corridors and good school districts are all important factors for potential residents. Persky was one of the speakers on the BTR panel at the 15th annual InterFace Multifamily Southeast conference, which took place Wednesday, Dec. 4 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta. Kyle Palmer, managing partner of Palmer Real Estate Investment Services, moderated the discussion. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. While the BTR segment may still be in its infancy, its fundamentals are solid, according to the panel. Demand comes from would-be homebuyers who are priced out of the single-family market. These purpose-built rentals have many of the same perks of for-sale homes, such as yards and private garages, without the handicaps of down payment and mortgage commitment. BTR construction completions nationally totaled more than 50,000 units …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesHealthcareSoutheastSoutheast Feature ArchiveTennessee

Creative Capital, Partnerships Loom Large in Healthcare Real Estate, Says InterFace Panel

by John Nelson

NASHVILLE, TENN. — Healthcare real estate investment is at a pivotal point of this current cycle. On one hand, the investment sales market is expected to rebound heartily following a few subdued quarters. According to data from Maryland-based research firm Revista, investment sales volume for medical office buildings (MOBs) was $2.1 billion in third-quarter 2024, in line with the first two quarters of the year but down from more robust quarters in 2021 and 2022. On the other hand, funding this expected uptick in acquisitions will be more layered than ever before, even with the recent cuts to the federal funds rate by the Federal Reserve. Ben Appel, executive managing director of Newmark’s healthcare capital markets team, said that the competition level is increasing as deals come to market, but what’s more notable is the capital stack behind those bids. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. “Today those bids have two to three different sleeves of capital behind them,” said Appel, who is based out of Newmark’s Philadelphia office. “We are seeing some of …

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MFSE2024-Capital-Markets
Conference CoverageFeaturesMultifamily

InterFace Panel: Multifamily Markets Can Work With New Interest Rate Ranges

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams ATLANTA — There is nothing wrong with the new interest rate environment that currently governs capital markets activity in commercial real estate, and borrowers just need to adjust their expectations, put them into historical context and get back to making deals. This is the view of at least a couple veteran lenders who spoke at the InterFace Multifamily Southeast conference on Dec. 4 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta. The event is now in its 15th year and continues to attract hundreds of multifamily developers, investors and lenders from across the region. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. Following two cuts totaling 75 basis points earlier this year, the target range for the federal funds rate, or the overnight interest rate at which banks lend to each other, currently sits at 4.5 to 4.75 percent. This year’s cuts marked the first monetary easing by the Federal Reserve in more than four years, and while at least a couple more slashes to the overnight rate are anticipated in the coming months, …

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