The REconomy Podcast

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi explore the often-overlooked infrastructure that makes America's $5 trillion real estate economy1 possible: private property rights and property records. The conversation explains how private property rights fuel wealth creation and economic growth, how title insurance emerged from the nee...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi and Principal Commercial Economist Xander Snyder examine the seemingly endless demand for data centers and explain why the story is more nuanced than the headlines suggest. The conversation breaks down why vacancy rates near record lows and surging pre-leasing activity reflect a demand base that extends well beyond AI, an...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi mark National Homeownership Month by examining whether America's enduring appetite for homeownership can overcome the most affordability-challenged era in decades. Their conversation explains what the long-run increase in the share of 25-to-34 year olds living with their parents means for...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Senior Commercial Real Estate Economist Xander Snyder examine whether the commercial real estate maturity wall has reached a turning point. The conversation unpacks why both borrowers and lenders are pursuing fewer loan extensions, how investor lenders and banks differ in their approach to loan extensions, and what "resolut...

In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi tackle a common misconception that housing has never been more unaffordable. Sharing the results from their proprietary analysis, they explain how tracking nominal house prices alone fails to capture the impact of shifts in house-buying power. Their conversation highlights how affordabilit...

In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi and Senior Commercial Economist Xander Snyder unpack the seemingly conflicting signals emerging from retail property price data in early 2026. They examine why one major retail price index suggested prices were softening, even as broader price-per-square-foot measures remained more stable. While the softer repeat sales re...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Senior Commercial Real Estate Economist Xander Snyder and Chief Economist Mark Fleming trace the full arc of industrial cap rates since the pandemic: from record lows driven by e-commerce demand, through a sharp reset as interest rates soared, to the cap rate plateau that exists today. They examine how cap rates have converged across major metros and why p...

In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi explore whether the 2026 spring home-buying season may turn on recent events and rising energy prices. They discuss the economic forces shaping housing demand, including labor market trends, mortgage rates, housing affordability and the persistent lock-in effect limiting supply. While affo...

In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi explore four key dynamics that are shaping the outlook for the broader economy and the housing market, including macro-economic landscape, labor market shifts, housing supply and even artificial intelligence and productivity. While the broader economy remains resilient, structural challeng...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi examine the demographic trends shaping homeownership demand, highlight the wealth-generating power of homeownership, and explain their cautious optimism ahead of the 2026 spring home-buying season. Despite affordability challenges and the ongoing rate lock-in effect, the underlying demand...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast, Chief Economist Mark Fleming, Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi, and Senior Commercial Real Estate Economist Xander Snyder unpack why an uptick in office conversions has had limited impact on the broader office market, and why that may soon change. Office-to-residential conversions remain difficult, costly, and limited in scale, while new office constructi...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi go back to the commercial real estate future with Senior Economist Xander Snyder, explaining how the emerging CRE cycle most closely resembles the 1990s and what that means for market participants. Drawing on a proprietary analysis of historical data, the team breaks down why cap rates are...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi dig into their 2026 outlook for the new-home market, framing how homebuilders remain well positioned in the competition for buyers with the existing-home market in the year ahead. However, that advantage may become harder to sustain as inventory and affordability in the existing-home marke...

In this New Year’s episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi offer their “resolutions” for the 2026 housing market. From mortgage rates that may remain above 6 percent to gradual improvements in affordability, inventory, and sales activity, 2026 resolves to trend toward normalization amid a still-solid macroeconomic landscape. Don’t miss...

In this special holiday episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi unwrap the hidden homeownership themes threaded throughout some of the most iconic holiday movie classics. From It’s a Wonderful Life to Home Alone to The Holiday, and Christmas Vacation, homeownership is more than a backdrop, it is the emotional core of the American story....

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi dig into the 2026 outlook for commercial real estate (CRE) with senior economist Xander Snyder, who identified five forces that will shape the CRE market as its nascent recovery accelerates. Stabilizing prices, rising sales activity, rebounding refinancing volumes, increasing distress reso...

In this holiday-themed episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi channel the classic Heat Miser and Snow Miser characters from The Year Without Santa Claus to debate the Federal Reserve’s upcoming December rate decision. From cooling shelter inflation and moderating wage growth to tariff-driven price pressures and a softening labor market...

In this Thanksgiving-themed episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi carve up the 2025 housing market trends they’re thankful for. From easing mortgage rates and improving affordability to growing inventory and demographic tailwinds, they highlight ‘grateful eight’ reasons for housing market optimism. Don’t miss a single REconomy episode...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi shine a light on the housing market’s scariest headlines, exposing the myths shrouding reality. They explain why slowing price growth, a modest uptick in delinquencies, and low sales volumes point to a market that’s steadily rebalancing, rather than crashing. Don’t miss a single REconomy e...

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi and Senior Commercial Economist Xander Snyder break down whether the commercial real estate market has reached peak distress, explaining why shifts in debt maturities, delinquency rates and sales activity across asset classes may offer a glimmer of optimism.

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi break down why Federal Reserve rate cuts don’t always translate into lower mortgage rates and how today’s complex economic environment may make the housing market less rate sensitive than many believe.   Don’t miss a single REconomy episode, subscribe today.  

In this episode of the REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi explore the state of housing affordability through the lens of history and even the NFL. They compare affordability levels today with those from the late 1970s and early 1980s, revealing why the “cheaper” homes of the past weren’t necessarily more affordable, and highlight the results of t...

In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi welcome back Senior Commercial Real Estate Economist Xander Snyder to discuss the shifting dynamics within the industrial real estate market. Net absorption for industrial turned negative for the first time in 15 years, a clear signal of a rebalancing market, but a closer look indicates lo...

In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi dig into the question on every potential home buyer’s mind, “where are mortgage rates headed through the end of the year?” Their conversation highlights why rates are not the only driver of market activity and explain the “dual lock-in effect” keeping a lid on housing market activity. Howe...

In this episode of The Economy Podcast™, Chief Economist Mark Fleming and Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi wrap up The REconomy Summer School series by diving into the findings of a recently published multi-part research series on the rising costs of living with special guest and research author, Senior Economist Sam Williamson. A variety of economic, environmental, and regional factors have pus...