http://www.reit.com REITWorld 2011: NAREIT's Annual Convention for All Things REIT has drawn to a close. This year's industry gathering, held at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, was another highly informative and productive event.
Nearly 1,200 industry executives, investors and other professionals gathered over the past three days to not only talk about where the industry is right now and where it is headed, but to also celebrate how far it is come.
That's because this year marks the 20th anniversary of the start of the Modern REIT Era, which began with IPO of Kimco Realty Corporation (NYSE: KIM). REIT.com spoke with Kimco President and CEO David Henry during REITWorld, and he said the company's IPO signaled the start of REITs becoming a widely accepted way to invest in commercial real estate.
"Before Kimco became public in 1991, REITs were primarily mortgage REITs with somewhat of a jaded history," Henry said. "It was really the beginning of a 20-year trend of the growth and the acceptance of equity REITs."
Taubman Centers' (NYSE: TCO) IPO, which came a year after Kimco and ushered in the UPREIT structure, is considered the second key event in the start of the Modern REIT. Taubman Chairman, President and CEO Bobby Taubman was on a panel at REITWorld highlighting lessons learned over the past 20 years.
Taubman, who was featured on the cover of the November/December issue of REIT magazine, said, "the UPREIT really unlocked the public capital markets to private ownership of real estate."
Joining Taubman on the panel were Hamid Moghadam, chairman and CEO of Prologis (NYSE: PLD) and Keith Pauley, managing director and CIO, LaSalle Investment Management Securities. Green Street Advisors Chairman Mike Kirby moderated the session.
However, the focus of any NAREIT event is on where the industry goes from here. And the person tabbed to help guide where the association goes in 2012 is new NAREIT Chair Don Wood, president and CEO of Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT).
Wood said he has two top priorities for the coming year: investor outreach and investor awareness; and monitoring political and policy issues in Washington.
During Tuesday night's NAREIT Board of Governors' dinner, Wood had the opportunity to interview one-on-one former President George W. Bush. The two discussed Bush's presidency, his legacy, his thoughts on leadership and other current geopolitical issues.
The conversation here at REITworld also drilled down into specific REIT sectors.
Richard Anderson of BMO Capital markets moderated the residential REIT spotlight session. The panelists were Richard Campo of Camden Property Trust (NYSE: CPT), Michael Schall of Essex Property Trust (NYSE: ESS), Tom Toomey of UDR (NYSE: UDR) and David Neithercut of Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR).
During the panel, panelists discussed the favorable demographic for the sector and agreed that renting has become a more popular personal option for today's generation of renters. Campo said a growing number of renters are willing to pay a premium to live in an apartment that is closer to an urban area, as opposed to a house in the suburbs.
Wachovia's Jeff Donnelly moderated a panel on the retail sector. He was joined on the panel by David Henry of Kimco, Sandeep Mathrani of General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP) and Steven Tanger of Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (NYSE: SKT).
The panel focused on the office/industrial sector was moderated by KBW's Sheila McGrath. Joining McGrath were Ric Clark of Brookfield Office Properties (NYSE: BPO), Bill Hankowsky of Liberty Property Trust (NYSE: LRY), Joel Marcus of Alexandria Real Estate Equities (NYSE: ARE) and Roger Waesche of Corporate Office Properties Trust (NYSE: CPT).
Sustainability was another hot topic at this year's REITWorld. "Sustainability is a part of everything we do," said Walter Rakowich, CEO of Prologis Inc. and one of the panelists on a sustainability forum. "It's a mindset. There is no on or off switch."
David Stanford, executive director of Real Foundations, moderated the panel, where participants touted the benefits of being green in the commercial real estate sector. Mary Hogan-Preusse of APG Asset Management US Inc. and Kevin Kampschroer, federal director with the U.S. General Services Administration, were also on the panel.
For additional coverage of REITWorld 2011, be sure to visit REIT.com where you will find session replays and interviews with industry leaders.
By Matt Bechard
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