Association of Real Estate Research Professionals

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Program Guide and Meeting Agenda

January 20^th and 21^st, 2010

Location:  Archon Group, L.P. Conference Center, 6011 Connection Drive, Irving, Texas 75039

Please plan to join our colleagues at the first meeting of the Association of Real Estate Research Professionals.  We’re looking forward to a successful and informative event and hope that you’ll be a part of it. With a combination of excellent keynotes, interesting sessions, plenty of opportunities to network with peers and some great social events, we’ve planned this meeting to be fun, and informative. As always, we invite your participation, thoughtful ideas and suggestions.

Pre-Meeting Program for New Analysts

Wednesday, January 20^th, 2010

Registration Desk Open

9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Optional  Skills Session

Introduction to Market Research – Theory, Technique, and Practice

9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

This introductory workshop, taught by senior professionals and guest instructors is designed to help provide research associates and new analysts with a perspective on how to conduct meaningful and insightful research. Covering the basic elements of professional practice in real estate research across all property types, the workshop combines group discussions, along with hands-on experience in evaluating projects. As a start toward building critical thinking skills and data examination techniques most helpful to researchers, this workshop introduces those new to the profession with understanding markets, evaluating data sources, preparing detailed analyses, developing conclusions and presenting research effectively. The workshop will also cover some state of the art technologies in the practice hierarchy including distributed computing, neural networks, genetic algorithms and other strategies.

ARERP First Meeting Opening – General Sessions

ARERP Remarks and Introductions

1:00 p.m. to 1:10 p.m.

Tamara Adamson, Vice President, Arledge Partners, Dallas, TX

Vice Chair of the Management Committee, ARERP

Welcome Message to Delegates                                                                                               1:10 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Douglas Prickett, Director of Research, Archon Group, L.P., Dallas, TX

Keynote Address

1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Meaningful Research in an Age of Uncertainty

Real estate research legend Dr. Ray Torto, Global Economist of CBRE Econometric Advisors, (formerly Torto-Wheaton Research) joins us to share his in-depth, unique insights about the practice of real estate research, market trends, the new political realities of the post recession world and what he sees moving forward. This is a rare opportunity to listen to a global market research leader.

First Session Networking Break

2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The State of the Art – Real Estate Research Today

3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The real estate research industry has undergone a number of challenges and changes in the past few years, with professionals being asked to provide more with fewer resources and take on an increasingly more complicated role in decision support and presentations to senior management. The panelists will discuss current initiatives and best practices on how they manage in today’s difficult environment.

Fundamentals of Certification and Practice Recognition

4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The Association of Real Estate Research Professionals will be engaged in the practice, in coming years, of providing training, resources and other tools to help both new associates and experienced professionals grow. As part of that effort, we’re going to outline the kinds of services and practices that will be potentially the most helpful, ultimately leading to the ability of practitioners to become a certified market research professional (CMRP). During this interactive session, delegates will have the opportunity to comment on future plans and offer thoughtful suggestions for the association to move forward.

Research Pallooza Reception and Gathering 

6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Location to be announced…

Join us for a networking reception and party where you can see old friends, get to know new ones and find camaraderie among colleagues. We promise no bull riding, pole climbing or cattle roping, just a chance to meet, greet and chat. We’ll have more on this social event soon.

Thursday, January 21^th, 2010

Registration Desk Open

8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

Good Morning Research

7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.    

Join this roundtable breakfast session, where you can grab a cup of coffee, continental breakfast, perhaps a couple of surprise foods and join topical discussions on research for all of the property sectors, or special interest sections. Simply follow the table titles and find colleagues with similar interests.

Keynote Address

The U.S. Economy and the U.S. Real Estate Economy and Forecast

8:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m.

Dr. Sam Chandan, Chairman and Chief Economist, Real Estate Econometrics, LLC, New York, N.Y.

During this fast paced session, Dr. Chandan will share his outlook for the U.S. economy and the real estate industry, touching on such topics as federal policy responses, national trends, capital markets, commercial mortgage actions, foreclosure and default trends and much more. Dr. Chandan is a frequent guest, contributor and commentator on many national broadcast outlets and writes a column for Globestreet and other publications.

Practitioners Roundtable – Research Tactics and Strategy

9:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Senior executive practice leaders from some of the leading companies in each sector will get together and share experiences, insights and the practices they’ve found to be most helpful. This interactive session provides everyone with the chance to get their questions answered and offers our delegates the chance to comment on their areas of specialization.

Second Session Networking Break

10:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

Institutional and Professional Fund Management Research Practices     

11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

The capital markets are in disarray, and traditional methods of getting projects of all types funded have been disrupted. As the markets seek to return to some semblance of normalcy, the new reality of commercial foreclosures, changes in leasing trends, property dynamics and other factors have made the major funds look at the sector is a very different way. During this session, the panelists will offer a new view towards what’s really happening in the institutional markets and how research can play a role.

Closing Remarks                                                                                                              

12:00 p.m. to 12:10 p.m.

This will be a wrap up of our meeting, and some thoughts about future meetings, events and other activities. 

Adjournment

12:15 p.m.

Thanks for attending the first meeting of the Association of Real Estate Research Professionals. We’re pleased that you could join us and look forward to seeing you at future events. We’ll be in touch with some very short surveys about the event, but if you’d like to share any thoughts about the venue, the content or anything else, please just write to us. We keep everything confidential.