A graphic depicting a digital brain with processor lines in the background and graph lines in an upward trend in the foreground all glowing on a dark background

Using Machine Learning and Big Data to Predict Real Estate Returns

The ability to predict financial returns has captivated investors and scholars for many years. Return prediction is essential to asset pricing and portfolio management. Predicting commercial real estate returns is complex and notoriously difficult but not impossible within some limits due to serial correlation and fundamental relationships. Classical econometric methods like linear regression have been [...]

Equipment printing a cement structure

Big Print Job

On average it took more than 10 months to build a house in the United States in 2023, nearly three months longer than in 2015, according to government data. Economists and other experts blame the homebuilding sector’s poor productivity on culprits including stringent regulations and a shortage of skilled labor. But they also cite another [...]

A graphic cord plugged into an outlet and a glowing charging station against a wall and by a brick parking spot

Charging Up Commercial Real Estate

For electric vehicle (EV) drivers, deciding which apartment to rent, hotel to stay or even store to shop may come down to where they can plug in their ride. Seeing a business opportunity, commercial real estate developers and property owners are increasingly adding EV charging amenities to attract EV-driving customers, including at high-end properties where [...]

A row of students in class attentively listening

The Essentials of Real Estate Education

As the multitrillion-dollar global real estate industry continues to evolve and expand, the importance of effective higher education cannot be overstated. In an era of ever more rapid technological and economic changes, what essential skills do graduates of real estate programs at higher education institutions need to succeed in the years ahead? Photo credit: Benjamin [...]

Ground view from behind a person from the knees down in business clothes and shoes on a busy sidewalk in the city

The Value of Living Within Walking Distance

A 2015 survey conducted by the Urban Land Institute found half of adults view walkability as a top or high priority when considering where to live. This helps explain why real estate listing websites like Zillow and Redfin long ago began posting walkability rankings. The idea is to provide a measure of a neighborhood’s pedestrian-friendliness [...]

Recent Findings: Spring 2025

0.12% Tariffs may disrupt global supply chains and reduce GDP A model estimates that the proposed tariffs on China may have an overall effect of reducing GDP by 0.12%. The costs are primarily in the form of negative supply chain impacts – importers must replace lost suppliers and renegotiate with remaining ones. U.S. tariffs on [...]

Where will mortgage rates go this year?

Note: U.S. recessions determined by the Business Cycle Dating Committee of the National Bureau Economic Research. Fed funds rate set by policy Treasury rate set by market Mortgage rate set by market Sources: Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED), UF Bergstrom Real Estate Center

Florida Consumer Sentiment: Floridians’ Outlook at Highest Level Since 2020

As the new Trump administration transitioned into the White House, Floridians seemed more upbeat, according to the latest data on consumer sentiment. The economic outlook of Floridians inched up in January to the highest level in nearly five years, according to the latest survey from the University of Florida’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research [...]

Artist rendering of the Atlantic One apartment community at Pompano Beach, Florida

Atlantic One, Pompano Beach, Fla.

Collier Cos. is developing the organization’s first project in Southeast Florida, Atlantic One, an apartment community with 303 units. The Pompano Beach, Fla. development also marks the Gainesville-based apartment developer’s first mixed-use urban infill community. Collier Cos. is led by Nathan Collier, who endowed the Nathan S. Collier Master of Science in Real Estate program [...]

A business plaza with several spaces

Florida is the Only State that Taxes Business Rents. There’s Good News.

It’s a mundane task countless tenants perform every month. Pay the rent. But if you rent commercial space in Florida you must dip into your pocket twice: Pay your landlord for the rent and then also for a special rent tax. The Sunshine State has rained on commercial tenants like this since 1969 when the [...]

Glowing digital graphs and lines on a dark background

Bergstrom Survey: Spring 2025

As 2024 came to a close and we peered into 2025, our group of real estate experts offered cautious responses with a hint of optimism. Thirty percent continued to view the commercial market as “weak” and 50% declared it “stable.” The remaining 20% were more optimistic as we entered the new year. Seven percentage points [...]

A presentation being given for the Alfred A. Ring Distinguished Speaker Series

Spoken Here: Levy, Cunningham, Ebenger and Stein

David Levy traced his 30 years’ experience in the real estate sector and how his moves up the career ladder and professional decisions were guided by four key concepts: pivot, innovate, network and be a constant learner. With a liberal arts background, Levy started out in urban planning until he had an “epiphany.” It was: [...]