Park Madison’s executive committee revisits its 2026 predictions and examines the trends shaping real estate for the rest of the year.

Park Madison’s executive committee, Rob Kohn, Carrie Coulson, Jack Koch, Brian Di Salvo and John Sweeney, joins Nancy Lashine for a mid-year assessment of the firm's 2026 Outlook. The group examines which themes have played out as expected, where market conditions have shifted and what investors should watch during the second half of 2026.

The discussion covers interest rates, fundraising, transaction volumes and the continued importance of distributions as institutional investors gradually return to the market.

[00:12:43, Carrie] “There’s a lot more scrutiny on how managers are actually creating value. . . . not just ‘Here’s my track record, here are my returns.’”

That scrutiny extends to different asset classes as well. The team talks about why niche operating strategies continue to attract capital, how data centers are navigating growing pushback and why industrial assets with access to power are becoming increasingly valuable.

They also question how immune the real estate industry is to developments in AI, especially given that people will always need a place to live, work and play.

[00:17:50, Jack] “I do think just generally as an asset class, there is some protection given that we’re humans and we always physically need those three things.”

The conversation reinforces that patient capital and operational expertise continue to separate durable investment strategies from opportunistic ones.

Resources

Park Madison Partners' website

2026 Outlook report