Real Finds Podcast

The Real Finds Podcast connects global trends to real estate decisions across Chicago and the Midwest. Hosted by Gordon Lamphere, a fourth-generation commercial real estate broker at Van Vlissingen & Co., each weekly episode explores how macroeconomic shifts in supply chains, interest rates, automation, public policy, and culture drive commercial real estate outcomes. Moreover, Gordon and his guests take high-level insights and apply them to better understand high-transaction markets, including:

Chicago (downtown office, adaptive reuse), Elk Grove and O’Hare (industrial/logistics), Kenosha (SE Wisconsin distribution), Oak Brook and Schaumburg (suburban office), Naperville and the I-88 Corridor (flex and R&D), Bolingbrook and the I-55 Corridor (warehouse/fulfillment), and the collar counties: Lake, DuPage, Will, Kane, and McHenry.

Guests include developers, investors, operators, and public-sector leaders shaping the built environment across the Greater Chicagoland Area and the Globe.

🎧 New episodes every Wednesday at 3 PM CT.

Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Caregiving, Building For A Longevity Society, And The Future Of Work With Marisa Toldo — RFP 89

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – March 4, 2026

Caregiving, Building For A Longevity Society, And The Future Of Work With Marisa Toldo — RFP 89 The office vacancy conversation has been stuck on the same set of explanations for four years. Remote work. Hybrid schedules. Interest rates. Oversupply. These are real forces, and they have genuinely reshaped demand. But...

Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

From Mötley Crüe to Multi-Million Dollar Commercial Real Estate Deals With Mike Herl SIOR – RFP 88

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – February 25, 2026

On this episode of The Real Finds Podcast, I sat down with Mike Herl, SIOR and partner at Madison Commercial Real Estate, to unpack one of the more unconventional paths into commercial real estate and, more importantly, what his experience reveals about the Wisconsin market today. https://youtu.be/HAF9khJMLkA Yes, Mike spent 17...

Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

State of the Commercial Real Estate Market – 2026 Q1 – RFP 87

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – January 6, 2026

Chicago's Commercial Real Estate Market – 2026 Q1 – RFP 87 As we move through the first quarter of 2026, the commercial real estate market in Chicagoland is no longer dominated by shock, speculation, or emergency decision-making. Instead, it is entering a phase defined by reallocation. Capital, tenants, and municipalities are...

Quantum & Data Centers Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Investing In Data Center Development With Anita Verma-Lallian – RFP 86

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – December 17, 2025

Data centers have quietly become one of the most strategically important asset classes in commercial real estate. They sit at the intersection of technology, energy infrastructure, capital markets, and land use planning, requiring a very different mindset than traditional industrial, office, or residential development. In this episode of The Real Finds...

Construction Development Real Finds Podcast

Is Mass Timber Is the Future of Commercial Buildings with Justin Den Herder – RFP 85

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – December 10, 2025

Mass timber has moved from architectural eye candy to a serious contender in commercial development. On this episode of The Real Finds Podcast, I sat down with Justin Den Herder, structural engineer, professor at The Cooper Union, and principal at global engineering firm TYLin, to talk through what mass timber really...

Office Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

The Office Crisis & Why Work Feels Broken With Cali Williams Yost – RFP 84

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – December 3, 2025

For nearly five years, boardrooms across America have been stuck in the same argument: How do we get people back to the office?Policies have been written, rewritten, enforced, rolled back, and reworked. Incentives have been tried. Mandates have been pushed. Threats have been made. Yet many companies are seeing the same...

Industrial Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

What’s Fueling Industrial Outdoor Storage Deals With Andrew Wiesemann – RFP 83

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – November 19, 2025

The Real Finds Podcast: Why Industrial Outdoor Storage Is Becoming the Most Misunderstood Opportunity in Commercial Real Estate Every so often, The Real Finds Podcast brings on a guest who reframes the way we look at a corner of commercial real estate. This week, that guest was Andrew Wiesemann, an operator...

Office Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

How To Right-Size Your Office Without Crushing Culture With Prof. Alana Dunoff – RFP 82

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – November 12, 2025

What Kindergarten Can Teach Us About Office Design When you think about the modern workplace, kindergarten probably isn’t the first model that comes to mind. Yet according to Alana F. Dunoff, a facilities strategist, Temple University adjunct professor, and principal of AFD Professional Services, it might just be the perfect blueprint...

Industrial Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

The Midwest Rebalance: Industrial Winners and Losers With Xander Snyder – RFP 81

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – November 5, 2025

When the industrial market peaked in 2022, nearly 800 million square feet of space was under construction across the U.S.—the largest development pipeline in history. Two years later, that wave has finally hit the market, and the story is shifting from euphoria to equilibrium. To unpack what’s really happening behind the...

Office Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

How CEOs View The 2026 Economic Outlook & Return To Office With Joe Galvin RFP – 80

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – October 29, 2025

What CEOs Really Want in 2025: Certainty, Skills, and a Smarter Office When the economy wobbles, tariffs shift overnight, and AI tools promise to do tomorrow what entire departments do today, CEOs start watching every variable that matters: confidence, people, and productivity.That’s exactly what Joe Galvin, Chief Research Officer at Vistage,...

Housing Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

50% Faster, 10% Cheaper: Factory-Built Housing That Pencils With Rory Rubin – RFP 79

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – October 22, 2025

When most people hear “container home,” they picture a rusty shipping box dropped in a field somewhere. But in Chicagoland, Rory Rubin, founder and CEO of SI Container Builds, is proving that perception wrong and building a new model for sustainable, affordable housing that actually pencils. Her homes are steel-framed, code-compliant,...

Office Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

The Sensor Stack Powering Tomorrow’s Workplace With Bob Cicero – RFP – 78

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – October 15, 2025

If you’ve spent the last three years trapped between “RTO mandates” and underused floor plates, you’ve probably felt the gap between big promises and practical change. On The Real Finds Podcast, I sat down with Cisco’s Bob Cicero to talk about a better path: start with the user journey, treat technology...

Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

The Business Of Billion Dollar Public Projects With Ray Garfield – RFP 77

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – October 8, 2025

When you talk about longevity and influence in American real estate, few names carry the weight of Ray Garfield. Over a career spanning more than five decades, Garfield has built, financed, and restructured billions of dollars in commercial real estate across every major asset class from Dallas land syndications and Wall...

Industrial Space Office Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Why Investors Are Whispering About Chicago’s Commercial Real Estate Market? (2025 – Q3) – RFP 76

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – October 1, 2025

The State of the Chicago Commercial Real Estate Market: Q3 2025 Insights Chicago’s commercial real estate market in Q3 2025 is sending mixed signals. On one side, downtown office vacancy hovers at record highs. On the other hand, industrial space near O’Hare and Elk Grove is essentially tapped out, with vacancy...

Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

The Hidden Real Estate Crisis in Higher Ed With Chris Morett PHD – RFP 75

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – September 24, 2025

How Universities Really Use Space And What Commercial Real Estate Can Learn (A conversation with campus space strategist Chris Morett distilled for investors, developers, and occupiers.) https://youtu.be/iXDVXcVtgA8 Higher ed real estate rarely makes front-page headlines, but it quietly moves billions of dollars in construction, leasing, operations, and community impact. In this...

Housing multifamily Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Zoning, Permits, and Politics: Why Illinois Housing Costs Keep Rising With Joshua Bandoch – RFP 73

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – September 10, 2025

Illinois Housing Crisis: Why the Nation’s Worst Housing Shortage Starts Here Illinois has long been home to world-class universities, two major international airports, and one of the most diversified economies in the country. But behind that strength lies one of the state’s greatest vulnerabilities: housing. The Illinois housing crisis has become...

Industrial Space multifamily Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Cold Storage, Industrial Growth & The Future Of Value-Add Real Estate With Clifford Booth – RFP 72

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – August 20, 2025

When most investors think about commercial real estate, their minds go to familiar asset classes: office towers, multifamily apartments, or sprawling retail centers. Yet one of the fastest-growing, most misunderstood, and most lucrative sectors in the industry is hiding in plain sight: cold storage. https://youtu.be/gQxrAkThLMY On a recent episode of The...

Industrial Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Avoiding AI Traps: Supply Chain Tech That Works With Rob Kress – RFP 71

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – August 13, 2025

In today’s volatile trade environment, supply chain resilience has become a boardroom priority. Tariff fluctuations, geopolitical uncertainty, labor shortages, and rising transportation costs have put unprecedented pressure on manufacturers and distributors, especially mid-market companies operating under $1 billion in revenue. To unpack how these companies can adapt, The Real Finds Podcast...

Industrial Space Logistics Real Estate Real Finds Podcast Warehouse

What Real Estate Investors Get Wrong About Robotics With A.K. Schultz – RFP 70

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – August 6, 2025

The Hidden Complexity of Warehouse Automation and What Real Estate Investors Are Getting Wrong? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZdAalY1QfA In the latest episode of The Real Finds Podcast, Gordon Lamphere sits down with AK Schultz, the co-founder of SVT Robotics, to break down the gritty reality of warehouse automation, beyond the hype, and into the...

Industrial Space Real Estate Real Finds Podcast

Building A Team That Performs With Megan Gluth – RFP 69

Gordon Lamphere J.D. – July 17, 2025

What happens when a small-town kid from Iowa becomes a corporate attorney, transforms into a CEO, and then buys the company she once served? You get Megan Gluth, the unapologetic capitalist behind Catalynt, a global chemical supply and manufacturing company with a mission as bold as its leader. https://youtu.be/8bGwSfxfpsU On a...

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