From Goodwin Procter and Columbia Business School:

When Goodwin and Columbia Business School teamed up to host our first Real Estate Capital Markets Conference 10 years ago, few realized how challenging market conditions were about to become. The global financial crisis that plunged the U.S. economy into recession in late 2008 put acute downward pressure on real estate asset prices and chilled investment across the industry.

The recovery since then has been modest, to say the least, but as we met in New York on January 27th for the conference’s 10th anniversary, the outlook for real estate capital markets was positive.

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The participants expressed general optimism that the tax cuts promised by President Donald Trump would benefit both property investors and tenants alike. Along the same lines, reduced regulations – such as a rollback of Dodd-Frank – would likely free up additional capital for investment. And many industry participants would likely stand to benefit from increased federal expenditures on infrastructure, the capital markets panelists concluded.

But other proposals have proven more worrisome. Some speakers cautioned that the administration’s immigration policies could stanch the flow of foreign capital coming into the United States through the EB-5 immigrant investor program, which grants foreign investors U.S. residence status. Other concerns voiced at the conference centered on proposals to allow for full, immediate expensing of all real estate investments, new tax rates for pass-through entities, and the elimination of interest deductions.

“There are incredible levels of uncertainty created by the new administration,” said Andy McCulloch, managing director at Green Street Advisors. “It feels like the range of potential outcomes just got a lot wider.”

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Read the full conference recap from Goodwin Procter here.