Welcome to another episode of The Brokers. Joining us are Jonah Mermelstein, Senior Vice President, Investments, and Tyler Mordas, Vice President, Investments, Industrial Development of Brookfield Asset Management, one of the world's largest and most successful real estate investment firms. Brookfield's approach is simple and consistent: investing in high-quality assets to maximize value. Their expertise enables them to spot trends in real time, enhance efficiencies, and consistently deliver strong returns for their investors through market cycles.

With assets under management totaling over $900 billion, a workforce of 30,000 operating employees, and over 500 million square feet of commercial space, Brookfield Asset Management stands as a leader in institutional-quality real estate. They build, own, and actively manage real estate companies and platforms, diversifying across sectors and geographies.

Tune in as we delve into their strategies, insights, and experiences in Brookfield’s New Jersey industrial real estate investments.

Join us for an engaging episode of The Brokers with Orry Michael from Faropoint, a leading U.S. real estate investment firm specializing in last mile industrial real estate. Since its founding in 2012, Faropoint has become one of the top 20 industrial real estate owners in the country, thanks to its innovative approach and proprietary data platform.

In this episode, Orry Michael shares insights into Faropoint's strategy of acquiring Urban Distribution Centers below the institutional radar, a move that has positioned them as one of the top buyers in their active markets. With a clear focus on markets with strong demographics, high rental growth, and construction barriers, Faropoint actively invests in areas positively impacted by e-commerce growth.

Faropoint entered the New Jersey market in December 2022 with the acquisition of the Kushner portfolio, focusing on class B and class C shallow bay light industrial buildings. This move further demonstrates their keen eye for valuable investments in niche markets. Orry discusses how Faropoint maintains a balanced portfolio with approximately 85% stabilized assets and 15% value-add components. He also delves into their exit strategy of aggregating last mile individual warehouses into a sought-after portfolio, benefiting from significant portfolio premiums at disposition to institutional players.

One of the highlights of Faropoint's methodology is their use of an AI program called REXy, which assists in predicting market rents with remarkable accuracy. This cutting-edge tool gives Faropoint a competitive edge in making informed investment decisions.

Tune in to hear about the unique strategies and competitive edge that have propelled Faropoint to the forefront of the industrial real estate market. Whether you're an industry veteran or just getting started, this episode is packed with valuable insights and practical advice for navigating the dynamic world of real estate investment.

In this episode, we sit down with Jeff Milanaik, a Partner for the Northeast Region at Bridge Industrial, based in Chicago, IL. Jeff opened the Northeast regional office in Parsippany, NJ, in September 2014. His role involves acquiring and developing investment-grade industrial buildings. Jeff's expertise and leadership in the field have been recognized by his peers. He served as the 2022 NAIOP NJ Chair and was featured on ROI-NJ's power list.

Under Jeff's leadership, Bridge Industrial has been highly active in the New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania markets. In recent years, they have developed over 22 million square feet of industrial buildings and projects worth more than $5.2 billion. Currently, they have a pipeline of over 8 million square feet of industrial and warehouse projects in the Northeast, slated for development over the next 18-24 months.

Throughout the podcast, Jeff discusses the current trends and future outlook of the New Jersey industrial real estate market, the challenges and opportunities in the sector, and how Bridge Industrial is strategically positioning itself to capitalize on these developments.