Raphael Sidelsky sits down with Brandon Shorenstein, Chairman and CEO of Shorenstein Realty Services, to discuss the firm’s evolution from a San Francisco office operator into a national institutional real estate platform. Brandon shares how Shorenstein has refined its investment strategy to combine bottom-up underwriting with top-down market analysis, focusing on markets and micro-markets with strong leasing demand, low vacancy, and attractive long-term fundamentals. He discusses recent acquisitions across Dallas, Nashville, Atlanta, New York, and other markets; opportunities emerging from the post-COVID reset in office values; and why smaller, high-quality assets are increasingly attractive. Brandon also provides insight into the recovery of office debt markets, Shorenstein’s current fundraising efforts, and the importance of discipline and staying focused on areas of expertise during periods of market dislocation.

00:00 – The Office Market Has Hit Bottom00:51 – The Shorenstein Family Legacy06:22 – Taking Over the Firm07:41 – A New Approach to Office Investing10:17 – Where Shorenstein Is Buying15:20 – Durable Cash Flow in Office18:21 – Finding Opportunity in the Right Markets23:42 – The New Office Amenities Arms Race25:02 – Is the Office Recovery Real?29:04 – Calling the Bottom in 202430:33 – Advice for the Next Generation32:50 – Carrying the Family Legacy Forward

Zach Aarons, co-founder and partner of MetaProp, joins host Raphael Sidelsky, Director of Equity Strategies at JVP Management and a 1999 Columbia Business School alumnus, on the Real Estate Forum Podcast to discuss how AI is reshaping real estate, PropTech, and the investment landscape. Zach shares his journey from real estate and finance to venture capital and explains how MetaProp evaluates emerging technologies and the founders behind them. He explores AI’s growing impact across real estate—from data centers and office demand to construction, multifamily, retail, and spatial analysis—while highlighting opportunities and challenges for investors. Zach also discusses the future of PropTech, AI-driven fraud and identity verification, and where he sees the most compelling real estate investment opportunities over the next decade.

Be sure to also check out Zach’s podcast, Between Zak and Aaron, with Zach Aarons, for more conversations at the intersection of real estate, technology, and innovation.

00:00 — Is AI Making Real Estate More Valuable?

08:16 — How MetaProp Started

14:07 — AI Is Transforming Construction

19:38 — Will AI Kill the Office?

23:00 — Betting on the Future of Data Centers

27:34 — Where AI Is Changing Real Estate

31:35 — The New Risks of AI

33:24 — The Rise of GeoAI

37:08 — Preparing for Real Estate’s AI Future

44:34 — Building Your Career Story

As Season 2 of the Real Estate Forum Podcast comes to a close, we’re proud to share a recap of a season filled with timely conversations and insights from some of the real estate industry’s most influential leaders and innovators. Hosted by Raphael Sidelsky '99BUS, the season explored the ideas, strategies, and trends shaping the future of real estate across global markets.

This season featured conversations with Hossein Fateh (CHQ), Anar Chudgar (Artemis Partners), Meredith Marshall '92BUS (BRP), Keith Breslauer (Patron Capital), David O'Reilly '01BUS (Howard Hughes), Lauren Hochfelder (Morgan Stanley), and Gregorio Schneider '96BUS (TC Latin America Partners).

Across investment, development, leadership, and global market strategy, guests shared perspectives on navigating today’s evolving real estate landscape and the opportunities shaping the industry ahead.

Hosted by Raphael Sidelsky, this episode features Gregorio Schneider, Chief Investment Officer at TC Latin America Partners and Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Business Finance Division at Columbia Business School. Gregorio shares his career journey from banking in Mexico to building a leading investment platform focused on industrial, logistics, and infrastructure opportunities across Latin America. Together, they explore how USMCA, labor costs, and regional supply chain shifts are driving manufacturing and logistics growth throughout Mexico.

The conversation dives into key industrial markets including Monterrey, Tijuana, Juarez, and Mexico City, highlighting market dynamics such as vacancy rates, infrastructure constraints, and sector-specific growth. Gregorio also explains how investors are adapting strategies in today’s market cycle through build-to-suit developments, stabilized asset acquisitions, and long-term nearshoring plays. The episode concludes with insights on tariffs, automation, currency impacts, and why regionalization between the US and Latin America could shape the future of industrial real estate.

Read Gregorio's featured viewpoint "The Southern Border and the Nearshoring Debate" on the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estates website here: https://business.columbia.edu/insights/milstein-center/southern-border-and-nearshoring-debate

00:00 – Introduction & Gregorio’s Market Perspective

27:51 – Adapting Strategy Through the Real Estate Cycle

28:32 – Demand Pipeline & USMCA Uncertainty

29:13 – Build-to-Suit Return Profile Explained

30:41 – Cash-on-Cash Returns & Exit Cap Rates

31:43 – Currency Risk & Dollar-Denominated Structures

32:23 – Automation, AI & the Future of Manufacturing

33:41 – Regionalization vs. Globalization

34:39 – Compression of U.S.–Mexico Cap Rate Spreads

35:19 – Book Recommendation: “The Globalization Myth”

36:00 – Life Philosophy, Running & Real Estate Cycles

36:46 – Closing Remarks & Additional Resources

Lauren Hochfelder, Managing Director and Head of Global Real Assets at Morgan Stanley, joins Raphael Sidelsky to share insights from her 25-year career in real estate and investment banking. Lauren discusses her journey from studying ethics, politics, and economics at Yale to leading Morgan Stanley’s global real estate, infrastructure, and credit businesses. She explores key real estate investment themes, including demographic-driven senior housing, industrial demand fueled by e-commerce, and global opportunities in markets like Japan. Lauren highlights the value of institutional memory, rigorous research, and collaborative team culture in making informed investment decisions. The conversation also touches on balancing a demanding career with family life and how real estate continues to serve as a hedge against inflation, even amid evolving market dynamics.

Host Raphael Sidelsky sits down with David O'Reilly, CEO of Howard Hughes Holdings, to discuss his path from engineering and investment banking to leading one of the country’s most innovative real estate platforms. The conversation explores the company’s master-planned community model, its long-term “flywheel” approach to development, and how projects like Summerlin and Ward Village create value over decades. David also shares insights on current market conditions, disciplined capital allocation, and the firm’s evolution toward a Berkshire Hathaway-style structure, including the potential role of insurance in scaling long-term growth.

00:00: Intro – Raphael Sidelsky welcomes David O’Reilly

02:00: Career Path – From engineering to investment banking to CEO

06:00: Lessons Learned – Finance and capital markets insights

12:00: Howard Hughes & MPC Model – Master-planned communities and flywheel approach

20:00: Balancing Short- & Long-Term – Profits, land, and growth strategy

30:00: Signature Communities – The Woodlands, Summerlin, Ward Village

38:00: Market & Capital Allocation – Current conditions and disciplined investing

45:00: Holding Company Strategy – Berkshire Hathaway-style growth and insurance

50:00: Closing Thoughts – Long-term value and strategic insights

Keith Breslauer, founder and managing director of Patron Capital, joins host Raphael Sidelsky to discuss the evolution of Patron into a leading pan-European private equity real estate platform. He shares how the firm built its value-add and opportunistic strategy across Western Europe, expanded into mezzanine credit and separate accounts, and partnered with Mitsubishi Estate to scale the platform. Keith also discusses the importance of governance, disciplined leverage, and local operating expertise, as well as Patron’s charitable housing initiative supporting women and families affected by domestic abuse. The conversation also explores ESG, mid-market opportunities across Europe, and the leadership values that shape Patron’s culture and long-term vision.

00:00 – Introduction

00:35 – Meet Keith Breslauer

03:11 – From Capital Markets to Real Estate

06:58 – Building Patron Capital & Investor Trust

14:35 – Patron’s Business Lines & Investment Strategy

18:44 – Investing Across Europe vs. the U.S.

23:37 – ESG, Student Housing & Office Opportunities

27:48 – Culture, Ethics & Leadership Principles

36:00 – Personal Motivation & Teaching

38:40 – Advice for Young Real Estate Professionals

41:48 – Future of Real Estate & AI Impact

45:00 – Patron Capital Legacy & Philanthropy

47:00 – Personal Philosophy & Gratitude

49:00 – Closing Remarks

Host Raphael Sidelsky sits down with Meredith Marshall, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of BRP Companies, to discuss his journey from electrical engineering at AT&T Bell Labs to building a leading mixed-income and workforce housing platform. He explains how BRP has grown into a multi-billion-dollar developer by focusing on the “missing middle,” leveraging public-private partnerships, tax credit financing, and institutional capital.

Meredith shares insights into transformative developments in Jamaica, Queens and Harlem, including the Urban Empowerment Center, and highlights the importance of transit-oriented development and policy alignment to address housing shortages. He also reflects on scaling BRP alongside major partners such as Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group, his leadership philosophy of empowering teams, and how innovation and disciplined execution are shaping the future of urban development.

00:00 – Podcast Introduction
00:35 – Meredith Marshall’s Career Path
03:40 – Lessons from Investment Banking
04:45 – Investing Across Africa
06:10 – Founding BRP Companies
07:30 – Partnership with Goldman Sachs
08:45 – BRP Today
10:10 – The “Missing Middle” Housing Opportunity
12:30 – Housing Constraints in New York
15:15 – Transit-Oriented Development Strategy
17:00 – Jamaica, Queens Development Case Study
21:40 – Urban Empowerment Center in Harlem
26:20 – Site K at the Javits Center
30:00 – Closing Thoughts and Future of Housing Development