Levy rejects the idea that all retail property faces the same structural decline. Goods-oriented centers remain vulnerable to e-commerce, while grocery-anchored and service-heavy neighborhood centers can have strong fundamentals and attract less investor competition.

Goods-oriented malls and power centers remain under pressure.
Grocery-anchored centers performed well during COVID.
Food and local services are harder to disintermediate online.
Weak capital flows can reduce competition for sound retail assets.
Property fundamentals matter more than the broad retail label.

“well, there's retail and there's retail.”
Michael Levy · 39:35

“there are opportunities and the food and service retail space because the underlying property fundamentals are strong and the fund flows are diminished, leading to…”
Michael Levy · 41:23

#retail#ecommerce#shopping centers#property investing

Hot Take· 1

Hot Take47:45

Hybrid Work Is Splitting Offices Into Haves and Have-Nots

Hybrid work permanently reduces aggregate office demand, but Levy argues that the damage will not be evenly distributed. Modern buildings with light, air, amenities, and collaborative areas can remain desirable, while obsolete properties and commute-heavy urban locations face expensive retrofits, conversion, default, or demolition.

Office attendance is unlikely to return to its pre-COVID level.
Employees need a reason to prefer the office over home.
Modern, amenity-rich buildings have an advantage.
Long commutes increase the impact of hybrid work.
Some older buildings cannot be upgraded economically.
The transition will unfold over decades as leases expire.

“fundamentally there's less demand.”
Michael Levy · 48:55

“it will be a very long grind.”
Michael Levy · 52:59

#office#hybrid work#commercial real estate#adaptive reuse

Explainer· 2

Explainer16:49

The Three Ways Crow Holdings Partners With Investors

Crow Holdings separates real estate development from investment management and uses three principal structures for development capital. Investors can participate in a single project, a recurring program, or a commingled fund, with each mandate governed by a defined strategy.

Crow operates distinct development and investment-management businesses.
One-off joint ventures finance individual projects.
Programmatic relationships cover multiple developments over time.
Commingled funds pool capital from several investors.
Each mandate has defined geographic or property objectives.

“We either pursue one off development projects in a joint venture with an investor, or we have a programmatic relationship with an institutional investor where…”
Michael Levy · 19:16

“It's always a defined strategy.”
Michael Levy · 19:54

#fund structures#joint ventures#real estate#investors

Explainer54:50

Why America's Housing Shortage Persists Despite Strong Demand

Levy attributes the shortage largely to local land-use rules, entitlement barriers, infrastructure limits, and homeowner opposition to density. The communities with the strongest housing needs are often the hardest and most expensive places to build, while local elected officials face powerful incentives to preserve the status quo.

Housing approvals are primarily controlled locally.
Existing homeowners often oppose apartment construction.
Regulatory requirements can dramatically increase per-unit costs.
Accessory dwellings alone cannot close the supply deficit.
Density is most useful near jobs and transit.
Political incentives make statewide intervention difficult.

“Every single year that goes by. It's becoming more and more difficult to build housing for Americans.”
Michael Levy · 55:07

“The answer is to allow density in transit oriented places where people where the jobs are or where people can get to their jobs.”
Michael Levy · 57:12

#housing#zoning#nimbyism#regulation#affordability

Story· 2

Story02:36

How Michael Levy Stumbled Into Real Estate Finance

Levy entered law school intending to become an attorney but was encouraged by practicing lawyers to move toward business. Investment-banking training placed him in real estate during a wave of IPOs and secondary offerings, giving him intensive transaction experience early in his career.

Levy attended law school at night while working during the day.
Lawyers encouraged him to pursue the business side.
He entered real estate without a prior interest in the sector.
A high volume of equity offerings accelerated his learning.

“Absolutely not.”
Michael Levy · 03:26

“But you get your chops early on by working really really hard.”
Michael Levy · 03:17

#career#investment banking#real estate#law

Story12:09

Trammell Crow Built a National Business on Handshake Partnerships

Trammell Crow lacked the means to employ a large development organization, so he partnered with ambitious local operators throughout the country. He helped them secure financing, shared the upside, and used trust-based relationships to expand nationally during a period of strong American growth.

Crow began with a speculative industrial building in Dallas.
He partnered with people instead of employing them centrally.
Local and regional banks financed development projects.
Partners split the upside equally.
Trust enabled the model to spread across the United States.

“He didn't have the means when he started out to employ people. He partnered with people.”
Michael Levy · 12:32

“look, I'll go into business with you all on a handshake, will split the ups fifty fifty, and I'll help you get started by helping…”
Michael Levy · 12:47

#trammell crow#partnerships#development#company history

Tool· 1

Tool42:17

Mass Timber Offers a Lower-Carbon Alternative to Steel

Crow Holdings is using mass-timber technology in a Frisco, Texas office building. Compressed and laminated wood can support increasingly tall structures while helping occupiers and investors reduce the carbon impact associated with conventional steel construction.

Investors increasingly request accurate carbon-footprint reporting.
Some capital is specifically directed toward lower-impact properties.
Mass timber uses compressed and laminated wood.
Building materials can help corporate tenants pursue carbon targets.
Permitted building heights depend on local codes.

“We are building in Frisco, Texas, which is in the Dallas market, a mass timber building.”
Michael Levy · 43:19

“It's a much better carbon footprint.”
Michael Levy · 43:38

#sustainability#mass timber#carbon#construction

Takeaway· 2

Takeaway59:04

A Weaker Home-Sales Market Can Strengthen Apartment Demand

Higher barriers to homeownership do not eliminate the need for shelter. When households delay or abandon purchases, more of them rent apartments or houses, making forces that weaken home sales potentially supportive of rental-property demand.

Slower home sales redirect some households toward renting.
Young adults eventually form households despite purchase barriers.
Demand can shift between ownership and rental formats.
Single-family weakness is not automatically negative for multifamily assets.

“those factors which are driving down home sales are helpful with respect to rental properties”
Michael Levy · 59:49

“these forces are positive with respect to the underlying demand for rental housing in America.”
Michael Levy · 1:00:09

#housing market#rentals#multifamily#homeownership

Takeaway1:10:02

Build Your Career Where the Industry Is Densest

Levy advises graduates to be honest about the work and sacrifices demanded by investment careers, then place themselves where their chosen industry has the greatest concentration of practitioners. Dense professional ecosystems increase exposure to employers, mentors, peers, and opportunities, although real estate remains more geographically distributed than finance or fashion.

Investment careers require sustained effort and personal trade-offs.
Choose geography deliberately rather than passively.
Industry centers provide more people doing the work you want to learn.
Real estate development offers opportunities outside the largest financial cities.

“my my first argument to them is go geographically where the epicenter of that industry is.”
Michael Levy · 1:10:29

“go where there are lots of people in the industry doing what it is that you want to do.”
Michael Levy · 1:10:49

#career advice#networking#real estate careers#geography

Frameworks in this episode

Culture-First Alignment Flywheel

Decades-Long Secular Trend Investing

Leverage and Growth Guardrails

Insights & moments

⚡Myth Buster· 1

Retail Real Estate Is Not One Asset Class

◆Hot Take· 1