IBA Real Estate Section’s 15th Real Estate Investments Conference, London, 4–6 June 2025
Corrado Rampini
Baer & Karrer, Zurich
Challenging times ahead for real estate investments?
The back-and-forth on trade tariffs stirs up financial markets and deepens recession fears around the world. But what does a looming trade war mean for real estate? At this year’s real estate investment conference in London, Jennet Siebrits, who heads Global Commercial Real Estate Services’ (CBRE) UK market research team, will share her insights into what might be ahead of us. It is a long-standing tradition for the real estate investment conference to start with a macro-economic and geo-political outlook. The conference, organised by the IBA Real Estate Section and supported by the European Regional Forum (ERF), will be held for the 15th time in London this year.
The conference has never been more eagerly anticipated by real estate practitioners. ‘We really had a tough time choosing among the many burning topics that we have to cover’, says the Real Estate Section’s Co-Chair, Mariëtte Lafarre. The conference will feature sessions on the 'S' in ESG (environemental, social and governance), renewables, the troubled retail markets and artificial intelligence (AI). ‘We are very excited to have such a high-profile speaker as Carl Frey to share with us his look into the crystal ball on how AI might affect real estate.’ Carl Frey, an Associate Professor for AI and Work at the University of Oxford, has been featured in over 100 media outlets, including The Economist, New York Times, Time Magazine, The New Yorker, Le Monde and FAZ.
‘Our conference also provides plenty of opportunities for interaction among the delegates’, comments Peter Kunz, the Real Estate Section’s Co-Chair. ‘The delegates love our traditional round table sessions on hot topics, the speed networking session, and our many social events, such as the conference dinner held at the famous Fishmongers’ Hall on Thursday or the real estate property tour on Friday that will take you by boat around Canary Wharf.’ For the sporty ones, Heuking’s Peter Vocke has been organising a running tour on Thursday morning for many years now.
‘We are really looking forward to welcoming all our delegates at our head offices at the welcome reception on Wednesday evening’, says Mills-Reeve senior partner, Charles Staveley, who is organising the conference together with Johane Murray, who heads the real estate practice at Brodies. ‘We have such a great group of officers and delegates’, she adds, ‘I am excited to see everyone again’.
