The 9th Annual Real Estate South Forum is a local peer-to-peer educational meeting exclusively for the institutional and HNW wealth management community with a specific focus on allocations to real estate.
This closed-door one-day forum will bring together public and corporate pension plans, endowments, foundations, insurance portfolios, healthcare plans, investment consultants, family offices, HNW wealth managers, and private banks.
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Ken McDowell, Real Estate Portfolio Manager, Employees Retirement System of Texas Ken McDowell joined the Employees’ Retirement System of Texas (ERS) in February of 2013 and has approximately 32 years of experience in commercial and multifamily real estate, including acquisitions, asset management, and dispositions. As a Real Estate Portfolio Manager with ERS, his primary duties include private real estate commingled fund and co-investment selection and underwriting, and asset management. Prior to joining ERS, Mr. McDowell worked for various companies and organizations in the commercial banking and real estate industries. Most notably, he was a Senior Real Estate Portfolio Manager with the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS), where he started the non-core private real estate portfolio program, and as a Senior Investment Analyst with the Ohio Public Employees’ Retirement System (OPERS), where he was responsible for acquisition and asset management services of directly held commercial and multifamily real estate investments. |
Please note only corporate email addresses will be accepted.
Why do I need to enter my corporate email address?
By using your corporate email address, we can verify that you are a registered financial professional.
State of the Industry
The Real Estate South Forum kicks off with a dynamic
fireside chat with Ken McDowell of the Employees Retirement System of Texas. In
this session, Ken will dive into ecommerce, onshoring, and other macroeconomic
trends impacting industrial properties. He will discuss how he views niche
property types like manufactured housing, medical office building, and cold
storage. What are key considerations around data centers? Have private real
estate valuations troughed? How quickly will they rebound?
Roadmap to a High Performing Real Estate Strategy
Real Estate industry leaders convene to lend their expertise
on how markets are shifting across the sunbelt. Which sectors of the real
estate market are performing favorably? How are investors and managers
diversifying their portfolios? How are investors designing a comprehensive
roadmap to a top performing real estate strategy?
What’s Next for Texas (and the Rest of the Sunbelt) –
2026 Outlook
In recent years, the Sunbelt has seen a surge of renters and
buyers, particularly as residents from the West Coast and Northeast sought more
affordable housing options. As we look ahead to 2026, will the region continue
its growth trajectory? Which real estate sectors are poised for the strongest
returns? What do industry experts anticipate for the future of Texas and its
neighboring states?
The Role of Housing in Portfolio Construction
What housing trends are most significantly driving the
residential, multifamily, student housing, senior housing, manufactured
housing, single family rental, and build to rent markets? How are mortgage
rates impacting housing markets in Texas? What are industry leaders predicting
for rental patterns? What are your thoughts on price corrections?
Expert Niche Real Estate Property Projections
Which niche real estate asset type is performing favorably?
As niche real estate strategies are continuing to gain favor amongst investors,
where are you focusing your research efforts? Life sciences, data centers, cold
storage, luxury garages, film studios, medical office buildings, among others,
are being woven into investment research conversations. Which alternative
sectors are top of mind for you?
Strengthening Your Debt Exposure
How are investors approaching debt in the current economic
market? How are lending standards, mortgage maturities, and loan defaults
impacting the market? How can you provide investors with predictable cash flow?
How are debt valuations teams making sense of local real estate markets? What
does the next year hold for commercial and residential real estate debt?
The Rise of Industrial
Industrial real estate markets are growing as logistics,
manufacturing and data centers continue to rise. How are these real estate
asset classes playing a role in your portfolio? Why should investors be
considering both industrial properties to bolster their real estate investment
strategies? What technological innovations are emerging in this sector? What
are the infrastructure requirements to support it?
The Next Wave of Retail, Office and Hospitality
How are developers, managers, and investors approaching the
next wave of commercial real estate? How is the projected growth of retail foot
traffic impacting your real estate portfolio? Has your perspective on office
changed in the last year? What will the next wave of hotels and hospitality
hold? Are luxury hotels and high-end destinations top of mind in your approach
to hospitality?
Debating Opportunistic, Value Add, Core, and Core Plus
Given the change in administration, how is your organization
shifting its approach to core and core plus real estate strategies? Are you
anticipating stronger returns for value add and opportunistic or core and core
plus properties? Which geographic markets are you betting on, and why? Do you
have a contrarian view on risk profiles? Are you balancing your portfolio with
a blend of opportunistic, value add, core, and core plus?
The Future of Real Estate
Industry leaders take the stage to share their critical
market projections. Where is the real estate industry heading? What market
trends are fading, and which are emerging? How are you approaching asset
protection for your underlying clients? Which real estate asset classes are you
betting on in the long term? How are you approaching innovation as you look
ahead to the next 12-24 months?
REGISTRATION
INVESTORS: Complimentary Registration for all
qualified investors. Email [email protected] for
more information on obtaining a complimentary ticket.
MANAGERS & SERVICE PROVIDERS: Rates below
reflect the current price for all asset managers and service providers.
Early Bird - Managers & Service Providers | 2,500.00 USD | 12/20/24 |
Event Registration - Managers & Service Providers | 3,000.00 USD | 05/09/25 |