Real Estate Experts – Change & Opportunity Ahead

At Lake County Partners’ quarterly roundup, real estate experts discussed the future of the market. The panel featured Heidi Smithson of First Midwest Bank, Brett Kroner of Cushman & Wakefield, James Otto of CBRE, and Gordon Lamphere of Van Vlissingen and Co.

The discussion, led by Heidi Smithson, revolved primarily around understanding the commercial real estate market’s current state and positioning for strategic growth.

What Did We Learn?

The suburban office market is struggling but has a lot of growth potential post-pandemic. The panelists expect to see the removal of older, more functionally obsolete office space. Conversely, experts expect to see the model of offices evolve to meet changing corporate demands. Businesses are specifically demanding changes relating to the traditional commute and based around an evolving corporate model.

The Industrial Market Is Booming

Pushed by e-commerce and biomedical expansion, the industrial sector of Lake County is growing at a rapid pace. As a result, we see industrial real estate fight to supply growing demand as the vacancy rates continue to dip. Although there was some disagreement between panelists around what sectors of the market long-term growth will come from, overall, the industrial market will continue to be a bright spot.

Too Soon To Tell For Hospitality

Future consumer and business spending habits will define the hospitality industry. However, at this point, it is too difficult to predict the real estate future of the hospitality industry reliably.

Real Estate Experts See Big Change Ahead