Today’s commercial real estate discussions revolve around two main topics: politics and liquidity. On April 5, 2023, the Walker Webcast hosted two experts on these issues for a one-hour presentation. Willy Walker, Chairman and CEO of Walker & Dunlop discussed politics, the debt ceiling and capital concerns with National Multifamily Housing Council President Sharon Wilson Géno and Jeffrey D. DeBoer from Real Estate Roundtable.
The conversation began by addressing Silicon Valley Bank’s failure as well as Signature Bank’s collapse in light of rising interest rates over 12 months prior to their downfall. “Something was bound to break,” noted DeBoer about this situation; both he and Géno believed that Congress would likely reinstate certain banking provisions that had been rolled back post-collapse in order to protect regional banks which have become increasingly important players in multifamily financing since then – particularly when it comes to construction loans for housing supply growth purposes .
Géno expressed her worries regarding too much regulation while DeBoer mentioned Stopping Home Work’s Unproductive Problems Act (SHOW UP), recently passed by the House but still being considered by Senate members which could bring federal workers back into physical offices – an outcome beneficial for small businesses , parking garages , transportation services , safety measures & tax bases .
Moving onto office space conversion into residential use possibilities; estimates suggest only 10%-15% can be easily adapted due such changes requiring time before major undertakings are made given current circumstances including low interest rates over 12 years followed by 500 bps increase amidst pandemic conditions altering how built environment is used .
