IRR-Seattle Sponsors Hugh Kelly Presentation at Local AI Chapter Event
Oct 29, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Integra Realty Resources’ Seattle Office Sponsors Presentation
by Renowned Economist Hugh F. Kelly at Seattle Appraisal Institute Chapter Event
Kelly Ranks Seattle as One of the Nation’s Top Ten Most Vibrant Cities
DENVER, CO — (October 29, 2018) — IRR-Seattle recently sponsored an informative presentation by renowned economist Hugh F. Kelly, PhD, CRE. More than 300 industry professionals attended the Fall Real Estate Conference of the Appraisal Institute’s Seattle Chapter on Friday Oct. 5th at the Washington Trade and Conventions Center.
“IRR-Seattle is proud to have helped make this insightful industry event possible,” says Allen Safer, MAI, MRICS the Senior Managing Director of Integra Realty Resources – Seattle. “Not surprisingly, Hugh Kelly ranked Seattle as one of the nation’s top ten vibrant cities. We are proud of our beautiful city, which remains an attractive place to live, work and invest in.”
Kelly connected Seattle’s vibrancy to the more than $50 billion in commercial real estate investment Seattle has attracted since 2015. Citing research he has independently performed for over 30 years on urban economies and real estate markets, Kelly attributed Seattle’s attractiveness for real estate capital to several factors, including its pattern of mixed commercial and residential development creating a walk-to-work environment, socio-economic diversity appealing to talented young professionals, and global connectivity.
In the first half of 2018 alone, Seattle has seen $7.2 billion in real estate acquisitions, ranking it in the nation’s top ten in four categories: office, multifamily, retail, and hotel purchases. For appraisers, this liquidity supports the argument that both domestic and cross-border investors have positive views of Seattle’s sustained risk-reward relationship, a key to maintaining investment value over time.
Kelly holds a PhD in urban economics and the built environment from the University of Ulster (Northern Ireland) and has been active in the real estate industry since 1978. Formerly the Chief Economist of Landauer Associates, a prominent consulting firm and an academic teaching at New York University for 32 years. Kelly was the Chair of the Counselors of Real Estate international organization in 2014 and is currently on its Board of Directors. As the head of his own firm, Hugh Kelly Real Estate Economics, since 2001, he has played a prominent role in the redevelopment of Downtown Manhattan, as well as heading the affordable housing development corporation for the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, which has built and manages over 3,000 units for low income families, seniors, and persons with special needs. The author of more than 300 articles for industry and academic publications, Kelly now serves as Special Advisor and Director of Graduate Programs for Fordham University’s Real Estate Institute.
