The CRE Weekly Digest by LightBox
Stay informed with weekly episodes by LightBox offering insights into the latest developments in commercial real estate (CRE) and interviews with the industry's market leaders. Join Manus Clancy and Dianne Crocker as they provide CRE data and news in context. Subscribe so you don't miss an episode.
Episodes
77 episodes
Special Year in Review Edition: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly of 2025
It may be the season for a Santa Claus rally, but this week felt more Grinch than gift: a soft jobs report, 10-year Treasuries stuck above 4%, retail sales hinting at a more cautious consumer, and markets wobbling as investors rethink the AI tr...
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Season 1
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Episode 77
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35:50
Rate Cut, Rising Optimism, and Early Thoughts on 2026
This week on The CRE Weekly Digest by LightBox, Manus Clancy and Dianne Crocker break down the real story behind the widely anticipated 25 bps rate cut that pulled long-term Treasury yields lower and triggered a sharp stock rally. As thoughts t...
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Season 1
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Episode 76
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35:18
Signals, Slowdowns, and Surprises Kick Off the Final Month of 2025
This week, Manus Clancy and Dianne Crocker unpack a whirlwind of mixed, and often contradictory, market signals. The Fed’s Beige Book depicts an economy stuck in neutral, while the latest ADP report delivered the weakest private-sector payroll ...
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Season 1
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Episode 75
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34:59
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Thanksgiving Week Signals—Rates, Risk, and Resets
In a short holiday week packed with headlines, markets saw a rare “melt-up” as long-term Treasury yields dipped below 4.01%, inflation data cooled, and odds of a December Fed rate cut jumped to 70%. Beneath the optimism, however, the affordabil...
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Season 1
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Episode 74
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31:51
Signals and Sentiment—Markets Jitter as CRE Data Reveals Contrasts
Markets wobbled this week as investors digested a mix of stock selloffs, cautious consumer data, and jobs numbers that left the Fed “flying blind” heading into December. Confidence is uneven, with big-box retailers sending conflicting signals a...
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Season 1
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Episode 73
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31:36
Shutdown Relief, Markets Exhale, and a Confidence Check for CRE
As the six-week federal shutdown finally comes to an end, markets exhaled from Wall Street to Main Street, easing travel worries ahead of Thanksgiving. But with October’s official jobs and inflation reports still on hold, visibility remains lim...
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Season 1
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Episode 72
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36:14
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New York’s Bold Bet, Mixed Signals, and CRE’s “Back-ish” Recovery
Everyone in New York is wondering the same thing: what will Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s win mean for the city—and for commercial real estate? Manus Clancy and Dianne Crocker dig into how his campaign promises on affordable housing, rent freeze...
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Season 1
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Episode 71
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34:41
A Haunted Market? Rate Cuts, Layoffs, and the Fed’s Balancing Act
As the Fed trimmed rates a second time this week after a cooler-than-expected CPI report, trade tensions between the U.S. and China appeared to ease, the federal shutdown entered its second month, Manus Clancy and Dianne Crocker dialed into wha...
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Season 1
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Episode 70
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35:20
Market Resilience and Rising Optimism – CRE’s Quiet Comeback
Commercial real estate isn’t flinching. In this week’s LightBox CRE Weekly Digest, Manus Clancy and Dianne Crocker break down a market showing surprising steadiness as the federal shutdown drags on and another Fed rate decision looms. They dig ...
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Season 1
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Episode 69
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41:15
Tariffs, Data Blackouts & Pricing Reset – CRE’s Quiet Strength
Tariff shock, federal data blackout, and CRE dealmaking…still strengthening. This week, a new 100%-tariff threat on China could rejigger aluminum/steel inputs that already jumped 50%+ in Cushman & Wakefield’s math, and the federal shutdown ...
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Season 1
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Episode 68
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35:44
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Shutdown Week 2, Fed Cut Signals, CRE Liquidity, Lending & Deals
As we finish week two of the federal shutdown, markets shifted into risk-off mode while investors fly without official data. The team unpacks the Fed’s September minutes (cuts likely, cadence uncertain), lean on alternative signals (Carlyle’s r...
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Season 1
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Episode 67
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40:14
Markets Shrug, CRE Activity Steadies – Government Shutdown Risks, Bankruptcy Signals & SF’s Two Office Realities
For the week ending October 3rd, the LightBox team explores a market that seems unfazed by negative news. Despite a federal shutdown freezing key data releases, equity markets marched higher, brushing off Powell’s “irrational exuberance” moment...
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Season 1
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Episode 66
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34:51
Diverse Data Signals – Equity Highs, Housing Pops, and Multifamily Moves
For the week ending September 26, the LightBox team unpacks a market full of data contradictions. Fed Chair Powell may have given equity investors a sentiment reset, but stocks remain near record highs with CAPE (Cyclically Adjusted Price-to-Ea...
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Season 1
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Episode 65
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33:33
Murky Markets, Steady CRE – A Fed Rate Cut, Housing Slump, and Transaction Trends
For the week ending September 19, the LightBox team unpacks a market defined by mixed data signals. The Fed’s latest rate cut sent investors mixed messages, with Powell calling it a “risk management” move as job risks mount. Inflation data cont...
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Season 1
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Episode 64
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41:00
CRE Appraisals in Focus – Valuations, Refis & the Data Center Boom with Craig Benton of Synovus Financial
The CRE Weekly Digest team is joined by Craig Benton, Director of Valuation Services at Synovus Financial, to unpack the state of commercial real estate from the appraisal and lending POV. The team kicks off with a scorecard on Craig’s 2024 CRE...
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Season 1
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Episode 63
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35:21
Jobs Jitters, Tariff Twists & CRE Activity Late-Summer Slowdown
For the shortened week ending September 5, The CRE Weekly Digest team unpacks a turbulent few days in the markets. A federal court ruling that could unwind $500B in tariffs sent bond yields soaring, only to be reversed by disappointing labor da...
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Season 1
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Episode 62
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40:54
Episode 61: CMBS & CRE CLOs: What the Data Gets Right (and Misses) with Michael Haas, CRED iQ
CMBS issuance has roared back, yet distress, especially in office keeps building. In this episode, Michael Haas, founder & CEO of Credit IQ, joins us to separate signal from noise across CMBS and CRE CLOs. We dig into what the data shows ri...
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Season 1
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Episode 61
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32:28
REITs Demystified – Dividend Machines, Market Signals & What CRE Investors Miss
David Auerbach, Chief Investment Officer at Hoya Capital Real Estate, joins hosts Manus Clancy and Martha Coacher for a deep dive into the misunderstood world of REITs. Often dismissed as “boring” or overlooked next to market movers like Apple,...
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Season 1
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Episode 60
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34:20
Inflation Fails to Shake Equity Markets, Focus on Rate Cuts while CRE Holds Firm
For the week ending August 15, The CRE Weekly Digest team digs into a tale of two markets. Hot wholesale inflation data dampened hopes for a jumbo September rate cut, but investors are still more focused on the prospect of cheaper money than th...
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Season 1
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Episode 59
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31:18
CRE 2025 Forecast – Rate Cuts, Resilience, and the Rise of AI with Economist Ryan Severino
We welcome back Ryan Severino, Managing Director, Chief Economist and Head of Research at BGO, for a sweeping conversation on the macroeconomic forces shaping commercial real estate in the back half of 2025. Fresh off being named one of PERE’s ...
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Season 1
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Episode 58
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41:27
Mixed Bag — Fed Holds Rates, Corporate Earnings Falter, but CRE Outlook Sentiment Rises
While the Fed held rates steady as expected, the bigger story may be what's underneath:Corporate earnings show tariffs are starting to bite. Economic data prints are increasingly mixed. And the labor market is still holding out. But for...
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Season 1
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Episode 57
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40:30
Forecasting Through Fog — Rebecca Rockey on Stagflation, Tariffs & the CRE Outlook
Rebecca Rockey, Deputy Chief Economist and Global Head of Forecasting at Cushman & Wakefield, joins the LightBox team for a focused conversation on the macroeconomic forces shaping commercial real estate in the back half of 2025. With stagf...
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Season 1
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Episode 56
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37:50
Markets Dodge DC Drama – Inflation Muted, Bank Earnings Strong, and Industrial Bets Rise
This week’s slate of economic data left pundits divided even as investors cheered on rising markets. Retail sales surprised to the upside, inflation was muted, and bank earnings beat forecasts. However, deeper trends raise caution: tariff recei...
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Season 1
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Episode 55
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35:01
A Tale of Two Markets – CRE Distress vs. CMBS Resurgence with Morningstar’s David Putro
David Putro, Head of Analytics for Morningstar Credit, doesn’t sugarcoat it. In this candid conversation with the LightBox team, he offers an unflinching look at where distress is building in commercial real estate and why resolution is moving ...
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Season 1
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Episode 54
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34:20
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Midyear 2025 CRE Pulse Check and Outlook – Navigating the Second Half
It’s halftime in 2025, and The CRE Weekly Digest team is back with a data-driven gut check on a market that’s proving more resilient than expected. Despite tariff shocks, geopolitical tension, and consumer gloom, CRE hasn’t blinked. In fact, ca...
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Season 1
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Episode 53
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40:06
