Fall is officially here. Pumpkin spice is EVERYWHERE, football is in full swing, and most of us have had to put on a hoodie at least once.

It also means that our team is entrenched in planning to make BEC 2024 the best yet. Do you have ideas of what you’d like to see onstage in Salt Lake City? Give us your thoughts here.

Want to be featured in an upcoming newsletter? We’d love to hear from you!

Best Ever Hot Takes 🔥

💼 Back to the Office? Office leasing in Lower Manhattan reached pre-pandemic levels in Q2, with October witnessing a surprising 58% surge in activity, reports the Alliance for Downtown New York. And yet, Capital One Financial Corp. is looking to offload almost $200 million in real estate debt. Why? With a significant downturn in property values, coupled with COVID-19-related loan expenses expiring, defaults are looming. And that means lenders are looking to recalibrate and sell off property debts at a discount.

⏸️ Fed Hits Pause: The Federal Reserve opted to leave interest rates unchanged while indicating a majority of officials expect one more quarter-point interest rate hike before the end of the year.

📉 Tumbling Profits: CBRE Group Inc., the world’s largest name in commercial property brokerage, saw its third-quarter profits fall 56% and is prepared to take cost-cutting measures amid ongoing market challenges.

👑 The New King of Retail: A major shopping center owner is spinning off all its strip malls into a new $1.7 billion REIT as suburban strip malls thrive in a hybrid work environment.

🔥 Rents Rising? Although rent growth is likely to slow in coming years, there’s no sign of it stopping. And in some cities, like Boston and Birmingham, rents are on the rise.

Pitch Your Deal in Front of 1,200+ Potential Investors

Last year, the Best Ever Conference and Verivest joined forces to create a Pitch Slam competition where potential sponsors and syndicators could showcase their deals to potential investors on stage at BEC, and be in the running for $700K in investment dollars.

We received nothing but stellar feedback from the BEC attendees and contestants alike… everyone loved it. But they also had smart suggestions to make it even better.

So that’s what we’re doing for 2024.

Once again, contestants will vie for hundreds of thousands of investment dollars on the main stage at the Best Ever Conference in front of 1,200+ investors and our expert panel of judges. Applications are now being accepted. »

But this time, contestants will also be able to showcase their deal/idea on our Best Ever Deals website. All BEC registrants will also get exclusive access to review the details before joining us in person.

It’s going to be AMAZING!

Learn more and apply here. »

What We’re Binging This Week

Best Ever CRE Podcast: Why You Should Consider Being Asset Agnostic — Gain valuable insights from Bob Thomas, a seasoned investor with over a decade of experience, as he shares his journey across various asset classes, the importance of partnerships, and strategies for navigating the ever-changing real estate market. Listen today.

Article: Real Estate Investing Amidst Climate Change
The world is witnessing the undeniable impacts of climate change, from wildfires in Maui and Canada to October floods in New York and northern Europe. The shifting climate not only affects the environment; it also has profound implications for the residential and commercial real estate markets. This article, presented by Vyzer, aims to shed light on the impact of climate change on the American real estate landscape, providing insights for investors to make more informed decisions in this ever-evolving climate.

Economic Summit: Wondering what’s ahead for 2024? We had five CRE experts gather for a 90-minute rapid-fire discussion on everything from cap rates to politics. It was quite a show, filled with insights and some good banter. You can still get all the insights on-demand through November 15.

Is Salt Lake City Dry?