Aquiles Suarez, Senior Vice President for Government Affairs at NAIOP, has the considerable task of overseeing the association’s advocacy efforts at the federal, state and local level, and managing the association’s political action committee, NAIOP-PAC. In his signature candor, Aquiles shares with Marc his take on what Republican control of the White House and Congress means for the country and for commercial real estate, the impacts of tariffs proposed by the Trump administration, and the tax debate that’s coming in 2025. He also discusses the two Supreme Court decisions that stand to impact CRE, a NAIOP-supported adaptive reuse bill, and the organization’s top legislative priorities going into 2025. Recorded on Nov. 20, 2024.

Generational changes happening now are creating a fundamental shift in our society and the way people live and work, says Nikki Greenberg, a world-leading futurist focused on the trends and technologies shaping cities of the future. She joins NAIOP’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Shaine Anderson talk about the path that led her from licensed architect to futurist; the differences in motivating, training and retaining the next generation of workers; and five principles to help leaders adopt a future-ready mindset today. Nikki explains the concept of “Outcome As a Service” and shares small, practical steps that leaders can take to introduce more innovation into their organizations. She also offers an important reminder for anyone feeling overwhelmed by the tech tidal wave: “No one is an expert – we’re all just playing around.” Recorded on Oct. 18. 2024.

David C. Smith is the head of Americas insights for the Cushman & Wakefield global think tank. He joins the podcast and puts in a pitch for the office sector, which he said is experiencing a reckoning similar to the “retail apocalypse” that made headlines back in the mid-2010s through 2020. David discusses topical office trends including reduced square footage per worker, flexible office configurations and the flight to quality. He explains the cyclical vs. structural headwinds faced by the office sector, why “urban nodes” are one of the greatest opportunities over the next decade, and the optimal mix of downtown real estate (42% should be office) for maximizing GDP. Recorded on Sept. 23, 2024.

Brian Natwick, Chairman and CEO of Crescent Communities, our 2024 Developer of the Year, joins guest host Kathryn Hamilton, NAIOP’s vice president for marketing and communications, for this episode. “At the end of the day, real estate is an experience,” Brian points out – a principle that guides the firm’s approach to creating exceptional development projects. He shares the three definitive points in time that shaped the company; what Disney taught him about the value of creating experiences; and the value of a “guest chef” strategy. He’s brutally honest about the underwriting challenges and capital markets paralysis in recent years; tells us why he’s bullish on the Sunbelt; and explains what he means when he says Crescent is a place where you end your career, not start it. Recorded on Sept. 9, 2024.

Carey Heyman, CPA and managing principal of the real estate industry at CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen), joins us this time on the NAIOP podcast with guest host Christopher Ware, NAIOP’s Vice President for Business Development and Strategic Initiatives. Carey discusses his background, career journey and insights into the commercial real estate market. He also shares how CLA advises clients on managing cash flow and mitigating risk in their real estate portfolios; tax planning strategies for real estate owners, operators and investors; the potential impact of interest rate cuts; the need for proactive engagement with elected officials regarding potential policy changes; and more. Recorded on Aug. 29, 2024.

Get to know two special guests who lead the Cocoziello Institute of Real Estate Innovation at Penn State. Peter Cocoziello is the founder, president and CEO of Advance Realty Investors, a New Jersey-based real estate development, investment and management company, and the founding chair of the Institute. Scarlett Miller is a professor of industrial engineering and of mechanical engineering in the College of Engineering at Penn State and serves as the Institute’s inaugural director. Peter and Scarlett joined Marc (a proud Penn State alumnus) to discuss how the Institute will work to develop new solutions to improve the built environment, support sustainable development, address rapidly evolving real estate policies and regulations, and more. Recorded on Aug. 15, 2024.

In advance of NAIOP’s largest annual conference, CRE.Converge, Oct. 8-10 at Caesars Palace Las Vegas, hear from two seasoned CRE pros working in the region. Cassie Catania-Hsu, managing director and market leader for Las Vegas, CBRE, and Julie Cleaver, vice chair for NAIOP’s Education committee, discussed the city's unique experience economy; developing in a land-constrained market; the impact of sports and entertainment; trends in the greater Southwest and more. Recorded on July 23, 2024.

Erin McDannald, CEO of Elevated, started working with data centers back in 1998 during the dot-com boom, so she’s seen the sector evolve over decades. She joins podcast guest host Jennifer LeFurgy, Ph.D., NAIOP’s vice president of knowledge and research and executive director of the NAIOP Research Foundation, to share why she believes data centers are a critical piece of infrastructure. With construction spending on data centers up 69% year over year according to the Census Bureau, Erin explains the key demand drivers (not just AI), and how in many ways, data centers are leading the charge in implementing smart energy, preventative maintenance, and developing methods for more efficient cooling. She doesn’t shy away from discussing the challenges inherent with the sector, either: community concerns, the cost of cooling, supply chain issues for critical components and more. Recorded July 2, 2024.

An author, futurist and senior advisor to the Arizona State University Threatcasting Lab, Greg Lindsay guides institutions such as NATO and the United States Secret Service in identifying, disrupting, and mitigating future threats. He joins the podcast with guest host Shaine Anderson, NAIOP’s EVP and COO. Lindsay shares what’s up next for AI and automation – not Skynet or HAL 9000, but software that can act on its own and interface with real world systems. He discusses the massive data center buildout to support AI development, what it means for financial markets, the power grid, and whether intellectual property laws will be able to catch up. The very analog Sears catalog even gets a special shout-out. Recorded on June 11, 2024.

Spencer Levy is global client strategist and senior economic advisor at CBRE, the largest commercial real estate services firm in the world. He studies statistics in his free time, so he was happy to offer his analysis on the ripple effects coming with a new era of deglobalization, share a Tom Petty quote, and discuss two specific opportunities that have come with the recent devaluation of the office sector. With the U.S. presidential election looming, he drove home the point that while global politics matter, the most important issues that CRE pros should be worrying about are the local ones: electrical availability, water availability, the ease of doing business, the cost of property and casualty insurance. Spencer also talks about the uniqueness of data center properties, why he’s bullish on multifamily, and what he learned about the psychology of real estate from horse racing. Recorded on May 22, 2024.