A View From the Center: Fall 2023 Newsletter

Published on December 20, 2023

 

Student Programming Highlights

Distinguished Real Estate Speaker Series - Fall 2023  Each semester the Paul Milstein Center welcomes distinguished real estate professionals to meet with students to discuss their career path, observations of the market, programs and initiatives that they are involved in, mentorship, and advice for MBA students about to embark on careers in the real estate industry. The Fall 2023 distinguished speakers included: 

  • Ron Dickerman '87, President, Madison International Realty
  • Kimberly Brown, Principal Broker, IMPACT Realty Advisors
  • David Benson, President, Fannie Mae

Real Estate Debt Markets Panel With a range of programs and products, the real estate debt market is a dynamic and fascinating sector of commercial real estate– especially against the current volatile market landscape. A group of senior leaders in the the real estate debt space joined Professor Brian Lancaster and discussed how they built their careers in this area of the industry, what they are focusing on right now, and the opportunities and challenges this sector is facing.

The panel featured John Lippmann, Managing Director, Portfolio Manager at New York Life Investments, Miriam Wheeler, Partner and Head of the Global Real Estate Financing Group at Goldman Sachs, Michael Wiebolt '16, Senior Managing Director, Real Estate Debt Strategies at Blackstone, and Eric Wu '08, Senior Managing Director, Chief Operating Officer of Estate Americas at Blackstone. 

Coming to Terms: Negotiating Real Estate Joint Ventures

by Arushi Ray '24

Arranging capital, a cornerstone of real estate investment and development, was at the heart of the 12th annual Coming to Terms: Negotiating Real Estate Joint Ventures workshop hosted by Columbia Business School on November 17, 2023. This was a convergence of over 80 MBA, EMBA, MSRED, and students from Columbia, MIT, and NYU. They were there not just to learn but to actively engage in a realistic Joint Venture negotiation, honing skills for their imminent roles as future leaders in the urban landscape.

This event, co-organized by Columbia Business School's Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate and the MIT Center for Real Estate, provided a unique platform for students to interact with and glean insights from experienced professionals in the real estate sector, covering legal, investment, and development angles. [click here to read the full article by Arushi Ray '24]

Real Estate Association Fall Highlights

REA Trek: Austin, TX In November, the REA travelled to Austin, Texas for its Fall 2023 Trek. In addition to some good BBQ, highlights of the trip included:

  • Tour of 700 River high-rise residential development in the Rainey District with Trammell Crow Company
  • Visit to Tesla's Texas Gigafactory
  • In-office presentation with Austin-based Pennybacker Capital
  • Tour of Sixth and Guadalupe downtown mixed-use tower with Lincoln Property Company
  • Capped off the trip with a CBS Alumni Social 

Thank you to our trip planners for making this a success: Ned Yale '24, Elena Chavez '25 & Matt Ghidotti '25.

Alumni Mentorship Breakfast This Fall, the REA Alumni and Mentorship VPs Ruby Wang '24 & Joe Pitsor '24 and the AVPs Oge Anoliefo '25 & Jimmy Joyce '25 organized the annual Alumni Mentorship Kickoff Breakfast. Over fifty students and alumni joined together at the Manhattanville campus to network and meet one another. 

Special thanks to the alumni who volunteered their time as mentors and joined us on campus to kick off the mentorship program for the 2023-2024 school year. 

Faculty Highlights

Student-Faculty Lunch & Learn

Each semester, the Paul Milstein Center hosts a Student-Faculty Lunch & Learn with one of our Real Estate faculty members. In October, Adjunct Professor Ed Adler '88, Managing Partner at Lubert Adler, and Ron Kravit, Senior Managing Director at Cerberus Capital Management, met with a group of students to talk about the market, their careers, and advice for soon-to-be graduates.

Alumni Highlights

Alumni Meet-Ups Across the US This past semester the Paul Milstein Center hosted three alumni networking socials across the United States. 

Thank you to all of our alumni hosts! 

  • Miami, FL - Stoney Cox '07 & Gentry Hoit '90 
  • Austin, TX - Matt Fox '02 
  • Seattle, WA - Scott Shapiro '99, Katie Pelczar '08, & Ed McGovern '95

16th Annual Real Estate Symposium

In early December the Paul Milstein Center hosted 200 alumni along with current students on campus for the 16th annual Real Estate Symposium. Participants gathered from 16 US states and 6 different countries, crossing 53 graduation years! Dean Emeritus, Glenn Hubbard commenced the program with a timely presentation on the state of the economy, Mark Peter Davis ’08 shared an eye opening lighting talk on various AI concepts and tools already supporting and disrupting the real estate industry through reporting, operations, security, customer service, and safety. Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh and Marc Holliday CU '90, Chairman and CEO, SL Green Realty Corp. addressed the state of the office market, the current research on “doom loops” and the health of urban centers, as well as a productive path forward for NYC. The latter part of the program began with a panel, hosted by Katie Pelczar '08, featuring Anar Chudgar and Alisa Mall, and focused on opportunities and investments in the current market. The day concluded with an illuminating keynote fireside chat with Amy Price, led by Gentry Hoit ’90, before sending everyone off to a festive networking cocktail reception.

On behalf of the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate at Columbia Business School and the Real Estate Circle, thank you to all who attended, in-person or via livestream, and to all who support the MBA Real Estate Program and real estate initiatives in various ways. Special thanks to the 2023 planning committee for their time and expertise building the 2023 agenda. See you in 2024!

Real Estate Circle

CBS Alums: The Real Estate Circle host a monthly Market Observation Assembly and Alumni Exchange (Virtual). Learn more at CBS RE. 

Email [email protected] to join the guest list or to learn more about the group’s events and activities.

Announcements

  • Executive Education: Real Estate Investing Online: Real Estate Investing Strategies, 6 weeks beginning February 22, 2024
  • In-person: Real Estate Investing Course, March 12

Impact at the Center

A little bit goes a long way, and your generous contributions help us continue the Center's strong tradition of equipping MBA students with the necessary tools both in and out of the classroom, to pursue a career in global real estate. Alumni can volunteer their time as mentors in the REA's alumni mentorship program, or host students for a company meeting or site tour. Email the center at [email protected] with any questions. 

To make a financial contribution, click the button below. On the main screen, please select "Other" as the designation option and include "Gift for the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate" in the Comments/Special Instruction field on the next page. We thank you in advance for your support!o

Other news

Meet the 2023-2024 Circle Fellows

September 21, 2023
Meet the 2023-2024 Circle Fellows The Real Estate Circle Fellowship is awarded to a select group of 2nd Year students who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership capability as well as academic excellence. Ambitious and energetic, these students have a proven record of success and are recognized for their potential to become future leaders in the real estat

Real Estate Faculty Highlights (April 2024)

January 22, 2024
Gothamist: January 1, 2024 ‘Doom loop’ professor says things are actually looking up for New York City Professor Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh is interviewed.      Bloomberg: December 20, 2023 Small US Banks Are Increasingly at Risk in Commercial-Property Slump Featuring Professor Tomasz Piskorski's research.      BISNOW: December 19, 2023 Economists: 44