Commercial Property Executive Commercial Property Executive

Construction financing carries a higher risk profile than most other loan categories. But even in today’s uncertain climate, some lenders are not only keeping a hand in this category but embracing it.

One example is Kennedy Wilson. In a blockbuster $4.1 billion deal last year, the L.A.-based investment company bought Pacific Western Bank's construction loan portfolio. That move helped double Kennedy Wilson’s debt origination portfolio to $7 billion.

In this episode, you'll from Tom Whitesell, who heads the debt investment group at Kennedy Wilson. He tells why construction finance is a sweet spot for the company and looks ahead to how the capital markets will respond when the Federal Reserve eventually does lower interest rates.

Whitesell gives a lender’s perspective on which assets are most attractive right now and weighs in on what makes an office building a good candidate for conversion to multifamily. Some of his answers might surprise you. 

Episode highlights:

Capital market conditions: When will the Fed move? (1:36)

The ripple effect of rate cuts (3:56)

How quickly will lenders respond? (6:51)

Waiting for problem loan cleanup (8:21)

Giant steps in the CRE debt market (9:44 )

Managing construction lending risk, and how sponsors get funded (13:05)

A young lawyer's drive to be in the room where it happens (19:13)

An office-to-multifamily success story (and why they're hard to find) (25:59)

Financing industrial projects: avoiding the elephants (32:58)

The multiple demand drivers for new industrial product (35:05)

Where to find standouts in CRE’s toughest sector (37:46)

Going off the clock (40:54)


Follow CPE’s podcasts on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! 

Today is the 55th Earth Day! How will you be marking the occasion?

Welcome back to Sustainability Street, our podcast on the intersection of commercial real estate and the world we live in. For this special Earth Day episode, I interviewed Marta Shantz of the Urban Land Institute. Marta is co-executive director of ULI's Randall Lewis Center for Sustainability in Real Estate and a fount of knowledge about CRE's reckoning with climate change.

The theme of this year's Earth Day is "Plastics vs. the Planet," so Schantz and I discussed how CRE is progressing with the circular economy and other impact-reducing strategies and opportunities. This is a critical time for CRE sustainability. Firms are being more "strategic" than ever about getting to net zero and being greener overall, Schantz said, while having to contend with anti-ESG and now anti-DEI sentiments.



Here's a sample of what you'll hear:

Tactical sustainability (1:17)

Leaders and laggards (2:39)

Landlord & tenant collaboration (4:30)

ESG, DEI and greenhushing (6:22)

Circular strategies and future-proofed buildings (9:25)

The IRA and untapped opportunity (13:21)

Climate regulation is sweeping the nation, and commercial real estate is often the focal point of environmentalists, legislators, and regulators.

Welcome back to Sustainability Street, our podcast on the intersection of commercial real estate and the world we live in. For this episode, I am joined by Anca Gagiuc, CPE's climate and energy editor, and you'll also hear insights from Yardi Energy's Randy Moss.

We'll take you inside some of the new groundbreaking local, state and federal rules designed to get building owners counting and reporting their carbon emissions, and making a plans for remediating them.

As mentioned in previous episodes, ESG is not a voluntary practice anymore. It is increasingly mandatory, and, while these compulsory practices make the planet cleaner, they can have a big impact on operations and asset values.




What these rules have in common (2:00)
Local Law 97 in action (3:14)
The role of RECs (7:20)
Boston's Local Law 97 (10:47)
California's Climate Accountability Package (13:13)
The "California Effect" and regulations to come (17:05)
Will the final SEC Climate Disclosure Rules stick? (21:24)

Professors of Architecture Ellen Dunham-Jones and June Williamson have been tracking changes in suburban areas since the early 1990s. They put their observations in a series of books about retrofitting suburbia, hoping that they will serve both young architects and city planners who are looking for models to replicate in their own suburban areas. Their first book, Retrofitting Suburbia, was published in 2008 and updated in 2011.

The pair’s second book—Case Studies in Retrofitting Suburbia: Urban Design Strategies for Urgent Challenges, released in 2021—serves the starting point of an insightful conversation between the two authors and Commercial Property Executive Senior Editor Laura Calugar. In this special edition of our podcasts (a video version is available on YouTube), they dive into what is stimulating change in how and where people live, and discuss trends shaping suburban America.

Brick and mortar retail is on a roll again, and that’s no surprise to Josh Poag. The pendulum, he points out, always swings back. And he’s in a good position to know.

As the CEO of Poag Development Group—and with more than a quarter century in the business—Poag leads a firm whose predecessor developed the first purpose-built lifestyle center in the U.S.

These days, Poag Development is still out in front. At a time when new retail projects are still relatively rare, the company is planning what’s believed to be the only new lifestyle center underway in the U.S.

In this episode, he weighs on the trends that are shaping the next generation of these properties. You’ll also hear about Josh Poag’s unexpected journey. As a chemical engineering student at Princeton, he had no intention of joining the family business. Yet he discovered that commercial real estate offers opportunities for creativity, for contributing to communities, that have become his passion.


Episode highlights:

Brick and mortar, back in favor (1:46)

Top retailer trends to watch in ‘24 (3:33)

Why institutional investors love retail—again (5:20)

The customer experience and the evolution of marketing (7:44)

Inventing the modern lifestyle center (9:48)

New and legacy projects: What goes around, comes around (12:25)

The joint venture that’s helping launch the company’s next era (16:04)

Mix-and-match redevelopment (22:43)

Building lifestyle centers: discovering the joy of creation (26:56)

Why a broad education builds a solid background for business (32:55) 

Poag Development’s CEO goes off the clock (37:17)

Welcome back to Sustainability Street, our podcast on the intersection of commercial real estate and the world we live.

For this episode, I invited Breanna Wheeler, director of Operations for BREEAM USA, back on the program to discuss the certification organization's impressive recent growth.

She also previewed BREEAM's much-anticipated Version 7, which will reflect the latest science in controlling carbon emissions and developments in international regulation.

Wheeler, whose knowledge about and passion for sustainability comes through loud and clear, has led the North American arm of the BREEAM International rating system since it landed on U.S. soil in 2016. BREEAM International was founded in 1990, about a decade ago.

Here's a sample of the topics covered:



Inside BREEAM's growth (1:38)
BREEAM's new and improved version (4:07)
The devil in the details of defining net zero (8:29)
Resiliency and decarbonization (11:00)
The question of adaptive reuse (13:21)
Fear vs. opportunity (17:05)
Wheeler's "action" plan for the industry (21:24)