News

Amidst rising geopolitical tensions, economic uncertainty, and adjacent pressures, Summit Journal #19 explores the key question for global CRE: is the US still the right place for investment?

Now that the One Big Beautiful Bill has been signed into law, what does it all mean for cross-border investors in property markets? Shiukay Hung answers.

Multifamily buildings are evolving from captive energy consumers to grid-connected assets. This transformation unlocks financial returns, mitigates risk, and delivers on rising regulatory and capital market expectations.

Melissa Román Burch, COO of NYCEDC, provides an update on New York City’s commercial real estate environment.

As electricity demand accelerates across global markets, real estate is emerging as both a constraint and a solution. From microgrids to distributed generation, buildings are evolving into critical energy infrastructure—and capital strategy must evolve with them.

The current climate crisis is the result of centuries of industrialization—and the economic and social factors that have driven this evolution. The fix will require investors to reconsider the problem from the ground up.

Michael Neiberg answers the question: Can understanding history’s patterns be the key to figuring out what’s coming next?

Technology is transforming the face of real estate. Government stimulus is incentivizing the buildout of critical infrastructure in innovations hubs, which is driving demand for advanced manufacturing, residential and retail assets in these areas.

The rapid expansion of digital demand is transforming middle America into a strategic hub where commercial real estate and energy sectors collaborate to leverage renewable power, existing rail infrastructure, and rural land for the future of digital infrastructure.

Boff questions cross-border investment strategies, and if earlier periods in history can teach us lessons about what to expect in future.

For years, data center development was largely a real estate discussion. But now, it is pivoting into an energy discussion—leaving data center developers and Big Tech “offtakers” to figure out how to ensure sufficient and affordable power at their sites.

Geopolitical instability, rare earth supply constraints, and decarbonization mandates are redefining the long-term value of real estate, prompting greater alignment between energy, policy, and investment strategy across global markets.

Sustainable investing now emphasizes precise energy and carbon performance metrics. This shift requires aligning sustainability goals with investment strategies.

In the US commercial real estate sector, the path to green energy transition is strong, but higher energy efficiency and lower demand for competing brown sources makes them relatively more cost-effective over time, which acts as a counteracting force to the path of transition to green sources.

Solar is no longer just about ESG—it’s a strategic investment that boosts NOI, increases property valuations, and hedges against rising energy costs.

Take the new AFIRE H2 2025 Investor Survey, with 16 questions, 9–12 minutes to complete. Deadline: August 8. Results published September 2025.

When we expand the definition of what constitutes an “energy real estate investment,” the aperture needs to be broadened so that related opportunities become part of the capital discussion.

America’s severe shortage of housing and energy poses an existential threat to the viability of long-term infrastructure investment. Yet with coordinated action from energy and real estate investors, we can meet America’s economic goals.

The commercial solar landscape in the US is shifting, driven by new policies, evolving incentives, and rising investor interest. So what’s new, what’s next, and what matters most for thew future of solar?

Energy isn’t just a service. It’s the foundation of our economy, cities, and future. Understanding its evolving and growing role cannot be optional for real estate investors.

Deep-pocketed international investors rank Boston as tied for the second-most desirable U.S. region in 2022, according to a survey by the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE).

Favored Property Types Include Multifamily, Life Science and Industrial, According to Annual Survey

The survey shows U.S. CRE continues to be an attractive target for global investors. But they are switching up their strategies in response to post-pandemic trends.

Secondary and tertiary cities are poised to be foreign investor favorites over the next decade in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, as changing consumer preferences continue to influence how capital is deployed.

For thirty years, AFIRE (Association for International Real Estate Investors) has conducted an annual survey to understand the goals, challenges and long-term thinking of international investors in U.S. real estate. Show host Michael Bull interviews AFIRE CEO Gunnar Branson on the results and insights from this year’s survey.

AFIRE released its 2022 International Investor Survey Report, underwritten by CBRE and Holland Partner Group. Austin, Atlanta, and Boston emerge as the top three cities for planned global investment in 2022, according to the report.

Especially since the Centennial Olympic Games 25 years ago, Atlanta has fancied itself an international city and player on the global stage. A new survey suggests the world shares in that opinion, at least in terms of valuable real estate.

New research from the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate may show that global buyers with long-term goals still have an appetite for U.S. real estate.

“The No. 1 most significant finding was the overwhelming support for environmental, social, and governance criteria,” Branson says.

Earlier this year, the AFIRE International Investor Survey found that more than six in 10 respondents expect to increase their investment in tertiary cities in the next three to five years.

Strong growth prospects and less intense competition is leading cross-border investors to secondary and tertiary markets.

The Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE) surveyed investors and found that many intend to increase investment volume in the U.S. this year.

The responses from our investors mirrored the results from a survey released in May 2021 by the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE) […]

For over 30 years, AFIRE has surveyed institutional investors from around the world The results from March’s survey are especially optimistic and very revealing.

During this week’s episode of Leading Voices in Real Estate, Gunnar Branson, CEO of AFIRE, speaks with Matt about current issues facing the CRE business, including his thoughts on what is driving foreign capital into US real estate right now as we are moving forward from the COVID crisis.

According to a recent article in the Austin Business Journal, The Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE) ranked Austin as the top market in the U.S. for foreign investors in 2021.

For instance, in AFIRE’s, the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate 2021 survey, the percentage of investors expecting to put more money into US CRE was much larger than for Europe (17%), Asia-Pacific (9%), the UK (7%), Canada (5%), or Australia and New Zealand (3%).

Gunnar Branson, CEO of AFIRE, Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate joins show host/investment sales broker Michael Bull, CCIM to discuss highlights from their annual survey/report, the 2021 AFIRE International Investor Survey Report.

In a recent poll published by AFIRE, overseas real estate investors preferred Dallas over almost every other US city to buy real estate in 2021; it lands on number 3.

AFIRE found Austin, Boston, and Dallas as the top U.S. cities for planned investment in 2021.