It’s been a big year. 

Interest rate adjustments, tariff roller coasters, major geopolitical shake-ups — to say commercial real estate has whiplash would be an understatement. But when we take a step back and look at 2025 as a whole, what are the key takeaways, and most importantly, what’s in store for 2026? 

To answer these questions, Bisnow Editor-in-Chief Mark F. Bonner sat down with CBRE Global Client Strategist and Senior Economic Advisor Spencer Levy for the last First Draft Live of 2025.

Their wide-ranging discussion touched on several key CRE topics, including the cities that will be hot markets next year and the “durable demand drivers” that Levy puts the most stock in. 

Levy said he advises his clients to wade through the “noise” that can overwhelm the industry and look at the drivers in New York, San Francisco, Dallas, Miami and the Midwest to really see what’s on the horizon for CRE. These include the reshoring of manufacturing and the train from Mexico to Canada, which carries nearly $2T in trade each year. 

“You follow that durable demand driver, that infrastructure, despite some of the tariff noise, despite some of the trade noise, despite some of the political changes — that’s the time to find opportunity,” Levy said. 

View the full conversation here.