🚀 From coal to code: $10B coal plant to data center conversion
🏗️ Warehouse stocks tumble as tariffs spark fears of trade slowdown
💰 PGIM Real Estate raises $2B for global data center investments
📚 New Course: Fundamentals of Underwriting

Data Viz of the Week: Tariffs Pop

Late last week, the US embarked on an economic experiment of unprecedented scale and impact: a dramatic return to early 20th century tariff policies and levels.

While it remains to be seen how long these tariffs last—and the ultimate economic impact they have—the markets are spooked. As far as real estate is concerned, increased tariffs will almost certainly increase construction material costs, and any broader economic slowdown will hurt demand: a double whammy for an industry already struggling with higher rates.

Upcoming Thesis Driven Courses & Classes

🗞️ Big News! After hundreds of requests, we built a real estate underwriting course focused on providing a practical, hands-on program with interactive models, real-world case studies, and both Excel-based and AI-powered tools you’ll actually use.

And we built it with an expert, Jay Dunn, who has underwritten and acquired billions of dollars of multifamily, industrial and office deals (and, more importantly, has trained legions of analysts from his investment banking days at Morgan Stanley and Gleacher & Company) across his 20-year career.

The course launches live in NYC on May 6th and 7th, and will be limited to 25 people. Sign up here.

All Upcoming Courses

• April 7: Fundamentals of CRE (💻 Online): A bootcamp providing an insider’s view of “a day in the life” of key industry stakeholders, with real-world insights and applications - Sign up

• April 14: Selling Into Real Estate Owners (💻 Online): A bootcamp for people selling technology and products into the real estate industry - Sign up

• April 14: Fundamentals of Real Estate Entrepreneurship (💻 Online): A first-person POV simulation for aspiring RE entrepreneurs to learn to source, underwrite and finance a local real estate project - Sign up

• April 29 & 30: Fundamentals of Capital Raising (🗽Live in NYC): Insider’s guide to raising capital for real estate projects & platforms–from individuals, family offices and institutional investors - Sign up

• May 5 Fundamentals of Capital Raising (💻 Online): Insider’s guide to raising capital for real estate projects & platforms–from individuals, family offices and institutional investors - Sign up

Three Articles We Loved from Last Week

It’s not easy keeping up with everything. Here are three articles we loved from the past week that you may have missed:

1. (Axios) Homer City to become $10B gas-powered data center campus

   The former Homer City Generating Station in Pennsylvania, once the state’s largest coal-fired power plant, is set to be transformed into a natural gas-powered data center campus. This 3,200-acre energy campus will generate up to 4.5 gigawatts, doubling the output of the original coal plant, and aims to position the Pittsburgh region as a leading hub for artificial intelligence. The project represents a $10 billion investment, with construction expected to begin in 2025 and power production targeted for 2027.

2. (WSJ) Trade Slowdown Fears Hit Warehouse Stocks

   Warehouse-focused real estate companies are experiencing significant stock declines due to concerns over a potential trade slowdown linked to newly announced U.S. tariffs. Prologis, a major industrial real estate investment trust (REIT), has seen its shares fall about 12% since April 2, while CBRE Group shares have dropped 8%. Analysts warn that a slowdown in international trade could reduce demand for storage space, leading to an oversupply in warehouse capacity.

3. (NJBIZ) PGIM Real Estate closes $2B global data center fund

   PGIM Real Estate has completed the fundraising for its first Global Data Center Fund (GDCF), securing $2 billion in capital commitments from a range of global investors. The fund focuses on a build-fill-sell investment strategy targeting the low-latency hyperscale segment of the global data center sector. Since its initial close in July 2023, the GDCF has developed a geographically diverse portfolio of assets across major markets worldwide, including North America, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.

Developer of the Week: Alloy Development

Sustainable real estate development firm Alloy Development scored a big win last week: a $290 million refinancing of New York City’s first all-electric skyscraper at 505 State Street in Brooklyn, cashing out a $210 million construction loan—hardly a sure thing in today’s market.

The 44-story tower contains 441 apartments and recently surpassed 85% occupancy 13 months into lease-up.

You can read more about Alloy Development on the Thesis Driven GP database here.

Know about a developer doing something cool that we should feature? Reach out to [email protected] with the tip!

—Brad and Paul