27th Annual Cornell Real Estate Conference
On October 1st and 2nd, real estate industry leaders, professors and students all gathered at the JP Morgan Chase Center for the 27th annual Cornell Real Estate Conference. This year’s Conference was aptly entitled “Unprecedented Challenge and Opportunity” and discussions focused on current market conditions, timely strategies and real-world solutions. With over 200 industry professionals in attendance, the conference is the premier industry event organized by the Cornell Program in Real Estate under the guidance of Conference Planning Chairman David Rupert.
This year’s conference included a career summit focused on addressing career trends and strategies in the midst of challenging market conditions. Cornell Program in Real Estate director Dr. David Funk and Anthony J. LoPinto, CEO of Equinox Partners and founder of Select Leaders presented the 2009 Select Leaders/Cornell Job Barometer report . Mr. LoPinto led a luncheon panel discussion focused on commercial real estate employment with Judy Wong from the Related Companies and Robert E Decky, CIO of George Comfort & Sons, Inc. Following the luncheon, there were two career workshop sessions. One session focused on career development strategies. The session titled ‘Resiliency and Reinvention: Strategies for Turbulent Times’ was lead by Dr. Marilyn Pruder-York and Lauren Ashwell. The second session titled ‘Laying the Groundwork for an Entrepreneurial Career’, lead by Andrew L. Benioff, Senior Managing Partner for Llenrock Group, LLC, focused on entrepreneurship in real estate. Finally, employers were invited to a seminar titled “Trends and Challenges in Commercial Real Estate Talent Management.”
The Conference officially kicked-off Thursday evening with an opening reception, dinner and Keynote Address by Wesley R. Edens, Founder and co-Chairman of Fortress Investment Group LLC. The following morning the Conference activities continued with an update on economic data, capital markets and commercial real estate from Peter E. Baccile, Vice Chairman, J.P. Morgan Securities, Inc. Mr. Baccile’s presentation ‘set the stage’ for the conference speakers and panel discussions by providing insight to current economic indicators and market trends.
A panel discussion titled “Capital 3.0” focused on the current state of real estate capital markets. Paul Rubacha, co-founder and Principle, Ashley Capital lead the panel discussion. The panel speakers were Michael Carp, Managing Director & Regional Head of Americas, GIC Real Estate; Steve LeBalnc, Senior Managing Director, Teacher Retirement System of Texas; Robert Booth, CEO North America, Emaar; Ethan Penner, President and Founder, CBRE Capital Partners; and John R. Klopp, CEO, Capital Trust, Inc. Topics discussed ranged from current capital pricing, transactions, and projected lending practices for 2010.
The second panel discussion, moderated by Carl F. Neuss, CEO and Founding Principal, Pacific Cascade Group, Inc., focused on the residential real estate market. The panel speakers were Arthur Margon, Partner, Rosen Consulting Group and Robert Toll, Chairman & CEO, Toll Brothers, Inc. The panel discussed the implications of economic indicators on the residential sector. The panel also discussed the impacts of residential oversupply, foreclosures, and government programs will have on housing’s recovery.
During the afternoon, the Cornell Real Estate Conference included sessions on government programs, workouts, foreclosures and opportunistic investing. Ann Kenyon, Dirctor of Securitization Advisory, Deloitte & Touche LLP, lead the luncheon presentation with an overview of current government programs that are currently involved with the commercial real estate industry. Programs such as TARP and PPIP were discussed in detail, as was the re-securitization of real-estate investment conduits, or “re-remic’s.”
The Conference wrapped up with two panel discussions focused on workouts and foreclosures. First, Chairman and CEO of Rockwood Capital, Edmond A. Kavounas and Russel S. Bernard, Managing Principal of Westport Capital Partners, LLC lead a panel that reviewed several case studies of real estate workouts. The second panel featured Adam S. Metz, CEO, General Growth Properties and Marcia L. Goldstein, Chairman of the Business Finance & Restructuring Group, Weil, Gotshal & Manges. They discussed topics such as distressed assets, bankruptcy and debt restructuring.
Once again, the 2009 Cornell Real Estate Conference provided valuable insights from numerous industry leaders during challenging times. Information regarding the 2010 Cornell Real Estate Conference can be found at: http://realestate.cornell.edu/council