Brandi Smith

Traditional commercial real estate investing was never designed for speed, access or liquidity. For decades, capital flowed through a system built on long hold periods, high barriers to entry and limited transparency. Edward Nwokedi built his career inside that system, then set out to reengineer it.

When markets turn volatile, certainty becomes a scarce commodity. For Farhan Kabani, those moments are where his work matters most. Over more than two decades in commercial real estate capital markets, Kabani has built a reputation for calm execution, disciplined preparation and an ability to bring clarity to transactions unfolding in uncertain conditions.

Walk into the right building in Chicago’s West Loop and the lobby hums: coffee bar, concierge, a fitness center that would not look out of place in a boutique hotel. Walk into the wrong one and the vacancy signs do the talking. Same city, same quarter, same market … entirely different reality.

Before 2018, Marcus & Millichap ’s Houston office was productive but unsettled. Headcount was modest. Growth was uneven. The foundation needed work. When Ford Noe stepped into the role of market leader that year, he saw the moment clearly: before the office could move forward, it needed a reset.

The most consequential retail developments often begin far from the site itself. For Heather Nguyen, they begin overseas. As managing director of Asia Pacific Advisory Services, executive vice president and development partner at NewQuest, Nguyen has spent decades traveling internationally to identify emerging retail concepts and bring them to U.S. markets. Her work centers on curation, timing and alignment, turning global ideas into resilient domestic destinations that feel both distinctive and durable.

Chicago’s cold storage reset: Modern product rises as aging inventory lags

The former Caterpillar heavy equipment site in Will County will soon hum with a different kind of production. Hyundai Translead, the North American trailer manufacturing arm of the South Korean automotive giant, committed earlier this year to a $450 million investment that will spread across two Will County facilities including the previous Lion Electric operation site and create nearly 2,500 full-time jobs.

Jim Lake Jr.: Reimagining overlooked places through conviction and time

Trophy office rents in Dallas now average about $77 per square foot, more than double the roughly $37 per square foot landlords command in the rest of the Class A market, according to Cushman & Wakefield research. The spread between the two has grown from $25 to $40 per square foot since 2020 and national firms shopping Dallas from gateway markets like Manhattan are calling the trophy product cheap.

While commercial real estate delinquencies across the broader commercial mortgage-backed securities market have climbed past 6%, self-storage delinquencies have hovered around 0.1%, according to KBRA data cited by Shawn Hill, Principal and Founding Member of The BSC Group.