Summer 2019 Newsletter
Enhancing the Retail Experience for Students
Each year tens of thousands of real estate professionals who specialize in or are somehow connected to the retail industry descend on Las Vegas for several days in May for RECON (the ICSC Convention).

Since 2010, the generosity of Charles H. Wurtzebach and Susan M. Marshall Scholarship and the Sustaining Sponsors has enabled more than 90 students to experience ICSC in Las Vegas. 

This year’s attendees included: Matthew Buchbinder, Nicolas Cordoba, Alex Hernandez, Michael Holtzman, Michael Mann, David Michael, Ashley Miller-Hotza, Jack Sbertoli, Jeremy Weinstock, Matt Whitehead and Jason Witler. DePaul faculty and staff leading the trip included Charlie Wurtzebach and Olinda Rios.

The days, and evenings, of the attendees were packed as they sought to learn as much about the industry, and the ICSC experience, as possible. During the trip students: 

  • Attended 6 company presentations on the floor at ICSC, including Kite Realty Group, Pine Tree, Retail Property of America, Inc., Walgreens, Brookfield Properties & Bucksbaum Retail Properties, LLC
  • Attended at least 4 events, including those hosted by CoStar, Wintrust, Marcus & Millichap & CTI- Collateral Trustees & The Lord Companies
  • Provided information to people—alumni, potential students, parents of potential students—visiting and wanting to learn more at the DePaul Booth

The trip was a great success. At the recent Sustaining Sponsor meeting, Nicolas Cordoba and Michael Mann made this presentation of their key takeaways from ICSC.
2nd Annual Mid-Year Market Sentiment Report
A report issued by The Real Estate Center at DePaul University found that commercial real estate professionals believe Chicago is Still Strong, But the Bears are Making a Comeback.

According to the report, commercial real estate professionals in Chicago continue to find strength in the local real estate market, but the intensity of their convictions is changing, due in large part to state and local taxing uncertainties—property, transfer and progressive taxes.

According to the Second Annual Chicago Mid-Year CRE Sentiment Report, produced by The Real Estate Center, approximately 52 percent of participants—down from 69.8 percent one year ago—characterize the market for the first half of 2019 as consistently strong.

View the 2019 Report Here .
Survey Says...Mid-Year Report in the News
The Real Estate Center at DePaul University published a Mid-Year Sentiment report in mid-June, building on the success and expanding the reach of the inaugural report in 2018. 

The report was based on an eight-question survey of Center sponsors and members of the DePaul Real Estate Alumni Alliance (DREAA). Additional commentary and perspective were added through a series of one-on-one interviews with accomplished real estate professionals. 

The 2019 Report served as the basis for the Center’s Spring Conference and an expansive media relations program. Based on these efforts, the report generated local, regional and national news stories in GlobeSt , Connect Media , Bisnow , REjournals , Heartland Real Estate Business and Real Estate Alert.
Spring Conference & the Chicago CRE Market
In Mid-June The Real Estate Center at DePaul University held its Annual Spring Conference, which focused on a mid-year review of Chicago CRE market conditions.

Jim Shilling, the George L. Ruff Endowed Chair at the Real Estate Center at DePaul University, kicked off the event with his own commentary and perspective on the state of the marketplace, ahead of a panel discussion that was based on the findings of the then just published results of the Second Annual Chicago Mid-Year CRE Sentiment Report.

Shilling highlighted that one of the most popular topics of discussion is to answer the question(s) where are we in the cycle?, and How much longer will it last?

Acknowledging that it is a very difficult question to answer, without an obvious answer at this stage, Shilling said, “Maybe we use a baseball analogy and we’re in the 7th or 8th inning. Or maybe it’s a tennis analogy and we’re in the fifth set with no tiebreakers.”

Shilling noted that the length of current expansion, one of the longest on record, and other factors make it very reasonable to think that we could be nearing the end. At the same time, he said that with growth projections still positive, “we could still see favorable surprises.”

Other highlights of Shilling’s comments included:
  • Property taxes are an issue of enormous concern across the country, and a very important issue is Chicago.
  • The e-commerce trend is puzzling because Amazon is spending $10 billion annually on shipping costs but recovering only $5 billion. It’s a lost leader that gets us hooked and, in the process, in causing tremendous tailwinds for industrial real estate.
  • The office markets, downtown and suburban, are all about location and property type or age of the property because of a property’s ability to attract millennials and companies that rely on a millennial workforce.

In the end, Shilling believes the market will see more of a slowdown than a turn down; a characterization that buyers, sellers and users can tolerate better—whether they prefer baseball or tennis.
Following Shilling's presentation, Charlie Wurtzebach, Chairman of the Department of Real Estate, moderated a discussion with panelists Brian Atkinson, Managing Director at Hines; Sue Blumberg, Managing Director at Northmarq and Brian Rogan, Vice President and Sr. Private Banker at Wells Fargo.
Sponsors & Endowment Funds
Endowment Funds

Susanne Ethridge Cannon Endowed Scholarship

Chicago Commercial Real Estate Industry Endowed Scholarship

Douglas & Cynthia Crocker Endowed Director of the Real Estate Center

Douglas & Cynthia Crocker Real Estate Endowed Scholarship  
 
Michael J. Horne Endowed Real Estate Scholarship 
  
Kenneth McHugh Real Estate Endowment

George L. Ruff Real Estate Studies Professorship

Robert & Howard Weitzman Endowed Scholarship

Charles H. Wurtzebach & Susan M. Marshall Endowed Scholarship 
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