Cornell Real Estate Review

We sat down (virtually) with Jesse Prince, CEO and Peter Romano, VP of Operations of HappyNest. HappyNest putting real estate into the hands of real people by making it simpler than ever to invest in commercial properties. The more you invest over time, the more your nest egg grows.

On this episode we are joined by Spencer Burton, Co-founder and Head of Real Estate Investments, and Brandon Taubman, Chief Information Office, at Stablewood Properties. Stablewood Properties is a data-infused Real Estate Operator formed by a team of veteran real estate and analytics professionals.

The Cornell Baker Program's very own Chris Roller and Sam Berry are joined by specials guest Jake Marmulstein, Co-Founder and CEO, of Groundbreaker - an all-in-one suite of tools for small to medium-sized commercial real estate investment firms that raise outside capital.

Our guest on this episode is John Lewis (BSILR '98). John serves as the Title Executive Vice President & Chief Administrative Officer at The Harbor Bank of Maryland, located in Baltimore, MA. John is head of all lending, Sales and Distribution, Technology, and the branch network of The Harbor Bank of Maryland, and all activities for The Harbor Bank of Maryland Community Development Corporation and Harbor Financial Services. John joined us to talk about their Opportunity Fund initiatives as well as how they define community impact while achieving desired performance returns.

Our guest on this episode is Scott Walsh (B.Arch '99). Scott serves as Project Director and Vice President of Residential Development for Lendlease. He has worked with the company since 2016 and oversees all aspects of development for the company’s signature condominium development 277 Fifth Avenue. Over his career, he has successfully led the sellout of over $700 million in luxury condominiums and the leasing of over 5,000 residential units. He earned his Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell University and his Master of Science in Real Estate Finance and Investment from New York University.

Our guest on this episode is Justin Wai (SHA ‘06), Managing Director of Blackstone’s Hong Kong Real Estate Group. Since joining Blackstone in 2007, Mr. Wai has focused on acquiring and managing real estate investments in Greater China, including the establishment of Blackstone’s logistics portfolio in China, the acquisition of Tysan Holdings and the establishment of Blackstone’s non-performing loan investment platform in China. Before joining Blackstone, Mr. Wai worked as an analyst at Macquarie Bank's Real Estate Investment Banking team in Hong Kong, primarily covering the Hong Kong real estate sector as well as the region's various REIT and business trust markets. Mr. Wai is also a member of the Leadership Council of Blackstone Foundation, the University Council of Cornell University, and the Advisory Board of Hong Kong Government’s Partnership Fund for the Disadvantaged.

Our guest on this episode is Karl Mistry (Baker ’04), Group President for the Virginia and Maryland regions of Toll Brothers. Mistry details his 14-year tenure at Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) including his trajectory to regional president and the value of growing with a firm. He has added a fresh perspective to the storied organization which has proven to be a recipe for success as demand for their mid-Atlantic developments has increased with his oversight.Mistry also talks about the single-family home building industry and what it’s like to work for a Fortune 500 luxury homebuilder. Tune in as we discuss the single-family market, capital market environment, and Mistry’s sentiment towards the future of property technology and its ability to disrupt the industry. Mistry also gives his perspective on success. With plenty of advice for young professionals, Mistry sheds light on what it takes to succeed.

Our guest on this episode is Darien Wright, Chief Operating Officer of Brookwood Hotels. Brookwood Hotels is a portfolio company owned by a Brookfield Asset Management-sponsored private real estate fund. Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) is an NYSE-traded real estate firm with over 120 years of experience owning and operating real assets. In our conversation with Wright we discuss the “start-up” culture of Wright’s team as they navigate the complexity of a larger organization. Utilizing a lean operational model at each location, Wright and his team have learned quickly through exposure to different experiences. With 110 hotels and growing, his team is making a name for themselves in the extended stay space by focusing on their end-users. Hear about all of these topics, plus career advice from Wright, in this compelling episode.

Our guest on this episode is Daniel Sax (Baker ’12), who founded and leads both Sensi Properties and Sauvage Capital. As the founder and CEO of Sensi Properties, a real estate investment firm focused on the acquisition and development of cannabis properties in Canada, Mr. Sax is at the forefront of a burgeoning industry fraught with both challenge and opportunity. On this episode, we discuss the growth of the legal cannabis industry in Canada and its implications on real estate. Mr. Sax saw a generational opportunity to apply his real estate expertise to address space-based inefficiencies, many driven by capital market frictions, in the cannabis industry. Mr. Sax shares how he executed on this structural opportunity and speaks to his entrepreneurial journey and the path that lies ahead.

Our guest on the show is Rick Latella. Mr. Latella is the Practice Leader for the Americas in retail valuation at Cushman & Wakefield. Cushman is a household name in commercial real estate in the U.S. and has an immense presence overseas. Rick’s background has both depth and breadth. Starting with the state of New Jersey working in real estate taxation and transitioning to valuation of medical facilities, hospitals, nursing homes etc. to eventually landing at Cushman where he has immersed himself in retail. In lieu of having Rick on the show today we thought this would be a great opportunity to discuss how retail has changed over the past 10 years and what is the outlook of brick and mortar retail.

Mr. Dang is the President of Anpha Holdings and Founder of M.I.K Corporation – two leading luxury product trading, real estate developing and consultancy firms in Vietnam. The companies successfully developed thousands of luxury condominium, villas and landed homes spanning from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh city.The real estate cycle in Vietnam is much shorter than the developed world, creating huge opportunities coupled with immense risk. With Michael on the show today we explore the politics and intricacies of developing and owning real estate in Vietnam, how his firm mitigates risk and how they differentiate themselves from competitors.Mr. Dang is the President of Anpha Holdings and Founder of M.I.K Corporation – two leading luxury product trading, real estate developing and consultancy firms in Vietnam. The companies successfully developed thousands of luxury condominium, villas and landed homes spanning from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh city.

Our guest on the show is Seth Singerman. Mr. Singerman is the founder and managing principal of Singerman Real Estate, a diversified private equity firm. SRE focuses on maximizing risk-adjusted returns through investments in North America, in both debt and equity, across all major asset classes. You will hear how his process and detail oriented approach and disciplined investing style alongside his belief that being successful and good are not mutually exclusive has helped him grow his firm to where it is today. Singerman has now raised three funds, the most recent of which far exceeded its $400 million target. In light of recent headlines about Private Equity Groups raising tens of billions of dollars to place in Commercial Real Estate, we are excited to discuss the implications of such a raise on the industry, how capital markets have or are changing and what being an opportunistic fund looks like today and how to be nimble in the industry.

Today in the studio is our guest Julie Romey. Julie is a Senior Principle in the Los Angeles Offices of Keyser Marston. Her exceptional CV covers over 20 years of real estate analysis and project execution. She has structured development agreements for mixed-use and affordable housing projects throughout central and southern California, including liberty station in San Diego, the mixed-use development on the site of the former naval training center.Julie talks about trends in affordable and workforce housing programs, the types of financing available for these deals and presents a can’t miss case study that dives deep in to the inner workings of, “how affordable housing is built in America’s cities.”

On today’s show is our guest Art Adler. Mr. Adler is the chairman of and has led the Americas division of Jones Lang LaSalle's (JLL's) Hotels and Hospitality Group for over 17 years. In his current capacity, Mr. Adler provides strategic oversight to the group, which is part of Jones Lang LaSalle's Hotels and Hospitality Group international. He is directly responsible for the region's hotel transactions business, consisting of arranging the sale and financing of hotels properties throughout the Americas.Today, Art will talk about the major trends and impacts of technology on the hotel industry, give us a market outlook and provide us with some very sound and compelling career advice.

Today the Cornell Real Estate Review sits down with Matt Shore, the Chief Investment Officer for DRA Advisors. In today's episode Matt discusses DRA's investment strategies and their view of the market horizon.

On Today’s show we have an exclusive interview with Barry DiRaimondo, CEO of SteelWave. SteelWave is a full-service commercial, multifamily and mixed-use real estate management, operating company and investment management firm. Since its inception, the SteelWave team has acquired, developed or managed 6,000 multifamily units, 60.1M SF of industrial product and 36.6M SF of office product across our Western United States target markets at a combined cost of over $10.7 billion. Barry’s interview will leave listeners with an understanding of how to invest and recognize opportunity. A key takeaway is, invest where you want to live.Happy listening!

Spencer Levy sits down with Chris Trahan and The Real Estate Review to discuss students entering into the workplace, the effect of tax reform on real estate, and the future of retail.