The global real estate industry gathers next month in Cannes for MIPIM 2022, where they will find plenty of real, live networking and inspiration to steer them through the years ahead – as well as, hopefully, some Riviera sunshine.
The MIPIM 2022 theme is Driving Urban Change. Five key pillars to the theme are: Green is the New Black; Cities for Citizens; The Office Uprising; Real Estate – Much More than an Asset; and Housing First. The sixth is Real Estate Tech.
We ask 5 leaders in each of these fields, all of whom will be speaking at MIPIM 2022 this March in Cannes, for one key challenge and one key opportunity for the real estate industry.
The leaders are: Abigail Dean – Nuveen Real Estate; Guillemette Colombe – Make.org; Beverley Kilbride – LaSalle Investment Management; Neil Slater – abrdn; and Alex Notay – PfP Capital.
The upskilling road to making real estate green
Abigail Dean, global head of strategic insights, Nuveen Real Estate:
“The most significant challenge for the real estate industry [in terms of ‘Green is the New Black’] is bridging the skills gap to achieve net zero carbon for all buildings by 2050 at the absolute latest.
“This means rapid change in the real estate industry is necessary in the coming years. We have to transform existing buildings, and design new buildings in a completely different way, and we have to change the way we operate buildings.
There is a window of opportunity for those who can get up to speed quickly – Abigail Dean, Nuveen Real Estate
“New opportunities and new areas of work are being created, but the biggest area of focus is upskilling people throughout the industry: upskilling those investing in and those designing buildings – everybody who ‘touches’ real estate.
MIPIM insights – Abigail Dean of Nuveen Real Estate
“[Achieving net zero carbon] has to be at the heart of everyone’s role, and whilst that’s starting to click with a lot of people, we haven’t got there yet. Too many people in the industry think that meeting environmental targets can be done by someone else, by people who work in sustainability.
The key opportunities are around finding the right obsolescent building stock in good locations and transforming it into real estate that meets the needs of tomorrow – Abigail Dean, Nuveen Real Estate
“With regard to the opportunities [of driving ‘green’ urban change], there is a lot of demand for super green buildings at the moment and not many are available. So, there is a window of opportunity for those who can get up to speed quickly to take advantage of the potential value uplift, to deliver green buildings to the market and to satisfy that demand.
“The key opportunities [for the real estate industry]are around finding the right obsolescent building stock in good locations and transforming it into real estate that meets the needs of tomorrow.
Nuveen Real Estate is a sponsor of the Better Buildings Partnership ESG Training Course for Real Estate Professionals.
At MIPIM 2022, Abigail Dean is speaking on the panel session, ‘Green is the New Black: ESG principles driving real estate investment’ (Tuesday 16 March at 11h30-12h15). Join us there!
We cannot build the city of tomorrow without involving citizens
Guillemette Colombe, head of consultations at civic tech start-up Make.org:
“We believe we cannot build cities without citizens, so the key challenge is: how can we involve citizens at a local level and build the city that corresponds to their needs and to their dreams together with them?
With the arrival of social media, citizens challenge local decisions more and more and want to make their voices heard – Guillemette Colombe, Make.org
“It has become harder for local stakeholders to make decisions without involving the end users, the inhabitants. With the arrival of social media, citizens challenge local decisions more and more and want to make their voices heard.
MIPIM insights – Guillemette Colombe of Make.org
“Citizen involvement brings better decisions, better cities: it’s a key opportunity for the real estate industry’s future. Building cities together with citizens allows to provide a better understanding of what citizens need and how they behave. It generates solutions that are more adapted, with a better citizen appropriation.
Citizen involvement brings better decisions, better cities: it’s a key opportunity for the real estate industry’s future – Guillemette Colombe, Make.org
“The good news is that it has become far easier to involve citizens: there are many new tools, ideas and methodologies available, using field and digital participation. There is also a strong citizen will to participate, especially in the topics that impact them most.”
Be inspired by Guillemette Colombe of Make.org as one of 5 speakers taking to the podium for ‘Cities for Citizens’ at the MIPIM 2022 session on Tuesday 15 March at 14h00-14h45.
Offices: the next big challenge – climate change
Beverley Kilbride, head of transactions & asset management Europe, LaSalle Investment Management:
“With the return to the workplace gathering pace across Europe, offices must adapt. Institutionalised working-from-home habits will be hard to shift, and companies must look to re-imagine office spaces to lure staff back.
MIPIM insights – Beverley Kilbride of LaSalle Investment Management
“Best-in-class assets that meet occupiers’ ESG agendas and offer high-quality amenities and wellness credentials will become gold dust in this shifting market. As this trend develops, we will begin to see a divide between office buildings positioned for the future and those at risk from being stranded.
Best-in-class assets that meet occupiers’ ESG agendas and offer high-quality amenities and wellness credentials will become gold dust – Beverley Kilbride, LaSalle Investment Management
“With Covid-19 moving from pandemic to endemic, climate change is the next big challenge for real estate. Investors in offices will need to reassess their assets’ carbon footprint and implement carbon-cutting procedures to comply with Europe’s advance towards a net-zero future.
With Covid-19 moving from pandemic to endemic, climate change is the next big challenge – Beverley Kilbride, LaSalle Investment Management
“But this also represents a major opportunity for investors. Getting ahead of the trends will support outperformance and make you stand out in the crowd, helping you attract capital and occupiers.”
Discover more insights from Beverley Kilbride by coming along to the MIPIM 2022 panel session: ‘The Office Uprising: Innovating to bounce back’ (16h30-17h15 on Tuesday 15 March).
Real estate: much more than an asset
Neil Slater, global head of real assets, abrdn:
“We sometimes forget real estate is entirely correlated to human behavior. Collaboration between the private sector and central/local government is key. Changes we make can negatively impact the local community, businesses and society.
The key opportunity for the real estate industry is to demonstrate that we really can positively impact both the environment and society – Neil Slater, abrdn
“Hence the challenge is working with all stakeholders to build the right ecosystem for communities and, where possible, to anticipate change, plan accordingly, get the infrastructure and environmental considerations correct, and ensure that cities offer an attractive place to live and work.
MIPIM insights – Neil Slater of abrdn
“The key opportunity for the real estate industry is to demonstrate that we really can positively impact both the environment and society. Pricing the journey to net zero for real estate is challenging when the destination and routes are unclear, but the basis for valuation is becoming clearer.
With a dose of radical collaboration, maybe 2022 will be a defining point for the real impact of real estate – Neil Slater, abrdn
“Widespread use of industry standards with a focus from occupiers, means these areas will define real estate going forward. With a dose of radical collaboration, maybe 2022 will be a defining point for the real impact of real estate.”
Hear Neil Slater of abrdn speak on ‘Real Estate: Much more than an asset’ at MIPIM 2022 (Thursday 17 March at 14h30-15h15). Neil is also taking part in the closed-door RE Invest Summit at MIPIM 2022.
Housing: the opportunity for collaboration and public-private partnership
Alex Notay, placemaking & investment director, PfP Capital:
“Housing affordability will continue to be a hot topic for 2022 as the continued escalating demand across tenures and key locations is not matched by available supply.
“Wider residential – now often labelled ‘Living’ asset classes – are only increasing in their attractiveness to institutional investors seeking steady, inflation-resilient income in the ripples of post-pandemic real estate markets.
Wider residential asset classes are only increasing in their attractiveness to institutional investors seeking steady, inflation-resilient income – Alex Notay, PfP Capital
“However, there is a gap between that oft-mentioned ‘wall of money’ and the availability of appropriate stock; stabilised portfolios of sufficient scale are thin on the ground and construction cost inflation, supply chain issues and development risk all present challenges around delivering new housing at scale.
MIPIM insights – Alex Notay of PfP Capital
“The real estate industry is very fond of talking about collaboration and public-private partnership but there is a real opportunity to tackle the housing challenge.”
Alex Notay of PfP Capital is moderating two sessions at MIPIM: ‘UK: Devolution, the levelling up agenda & housing first’ (Wednesday16 March at 14h30-15h30) and, on the London Stand, ‘More Homes: Build to rent’ (Tuesday 15 March at 16h00-16h45).
You may also be interested in the sessions: ‘Housing First: The affordability challenge’ and ‘Housing First: A second wind for housing’.
See the full at-a-glance conference programme for MIPIM 2022.
Find out more about MIPIM September Edition here.
