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Chris Brown, sustainability manager at Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT), joined REIT.com for a video interview at NAREIT’s 2015 Leader in the Light Working Forum in Reston, Va.
Federal Realty owns, operates and redevelops retail real estate around the country. Brown discussed some of the particular challenges faced by a shopping center REIT in the area of sustainability.
Shawn Cepeda, managing director of debt capital markets at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, joined REIT.com for a video interview at NAREIT’s 2015 Leader in the Light Working Forum in Reston, Va.
According to Cepeda, sustainability for most companies is comprised of environmental responsibility, social responsibility and corporate governance. When Bank of America Merrill Lynch makes a decision about financing sustainability, “we’re really focused on the environmental element of the sustainability umbrella,” according to Cepeda.
In the latest edition of Quick Study, Brad Case, NAREIT’s senior vice president for research and industry information, highlighted a “very strong month for REIT investors” to start 2015.
The FTSE NAREIT All REITs Index climbed 5.6 percent in the first month of the year, while the S&P 500 fell 3 percent during the same period. Case noted those returns were in line with longer-term trends.
In the latest edition of Fundamentally Speaking, Calvin Schnure, NAREIT’s senior vice president for research and industry information, said economic developments haven’t hampered the strength of the multifamily real estate market.
Concerns about new multifamily supply and a possible shift to home buying have not materialized, Schnure noted.
Cliff Majersik, executive director with the Institute for Market Transformation, joined REIT.com for a video interview at NAREIT’s 2015 Leader in the Light Working Forum in Reston, Va.
The Institute for Market Transformation is a non-profit organization that aims to encourage energy efficiency and green building. Majerisk said the firm believes REITs can be market leaders in promoting sustainable real estate.
Mona Benisi, director of sustainability at Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE: SPG), joined REIT.com for a video interview at NAREIT’s 2015 Leader in the Light Working Forum in Reston, Va.
Benisi noted that one of the issues surrounding green leases in the retail sector is that of properly explaining what the contract involves.
“It’s a new topic; it’s evolving, both for landlords and tenants. I think a big challenge is having proper communication and really explaining what is part of a green lease,” Benisi said.
REITs started 2015 on solid ground, as continued low interest rates and promising fundamentals helped the sector outperform the broader market in January.
The FTSE NAREIT All REITs Index had a total return of 5.6 percent last month, while the return on the S&P 500 Index fell 3.0 percent.
Anthony Paolone, senior analyst at JP Morgan, noted that the broader market was impacted by jitters concerning oil prices, the dollar and Europe’s economy. Meanwhile, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell 0.5 percent in January.
In the latest episode of ABC’s popular reality series “Shark Tank,” which aired on Jan. 30, Kevin O’Leary, chairman of O’Leary Funds and a member of the show’s panel of venture capitalists, touted the investment benefits of the REIT-based real estate investment.
John Forester, director of energy and sustainability at REIT Management & Research LLC, joined REIT.com for a video interview at NAREIT’s 2015 Leader in the Light Working Forum in Reston, Va.
REIT Management & Research is a private company that manages publicly traded REITs. Forester noted that the company has sought to improve the process of collecting and aggregating data across its asset base by investing in a new platform that allows for the collection of information “other than what is typically shown on an invoice.”
Joshua Kagan, senior fellow with the Carbon War Room and director of business development at the Clean Fund, joined REIT.com for a video interview at NAREIT’s 2015 Leader in the Light Working Forum in Reston, Va.
The Carbon War Room is an entrepreneurial non-profit organization intended to use market forces to tackle climate change. The Clean Fund, meanwhile, provides financing that allows energy efficiency, water efficiency and renewable energy projects to be repaid through a voluntary property assessment.
