Contributor
New York, NY
Chief economist at Cobalt Real Estate Partners. Writes the widely-read 'Built World Macro' note.
The least glamorous systems in a building — heating, cooling, access control — are quietly becoming the highest-leverage place to deploy technology. The savings are real and they show up in the first year. Optimization, Not Replacement You rarely need to rip and replace. Modern…
The blind-pool first fund is mostly extinct. What replaced it is the anchor-first raise: land one credible institution or family office on negotiated terms, then build the rest of the vehicle around them. Economics Follow the Anchor Your anchor underwrites you as an operator,…
Real estate private-credit funds are increasingly seeking credit ratings, opening the door to insurance-company capital that cannot otherwise participate. It is a quiet but consequential shift. Ratings Unlock Balance Sheets A rating turns a niche debt vehicle into something an…
With demand concentrating at the top, the hardest job in commercial real estate is leasing the vast middle — buildings that are neither trophy nor distressed. Reposition or Re-Price The playbook is to invest enough to credibly move a building up the quality ladder, or to accept…
Build-to-rent single-family went from curiosity to a core institutional allocation in a few short years. With maturity comes a more sober understanding of where it works and where it has been overbuilt. Operations Are the Differentiator Scattered horizontal product is…