2024 Atlantic Market Outlook

Presentations will examine regional challenges and opportunities of Atlantic Canada, as well as the broader national trends and the impacts of global dynamics.

Program Highlights

What does the path forward look like? Get a bird’s-eye view of commercial real estate with a close focus on key sectors from top industry experts. You’ll see the industry from a new perspective as our speakers share their insights amid market challenges.

Networking Experiences

This year we’ll be having a networking component to our event. Please join us from 7:30 – 8:00 AM and build your connections with some of the industry’s most influential leaders.

Opening Comments

Andrew Bergen, Senior Vice President, Managing Director, CBRE Limited

Dissecting the Housing Supply Shortage and How to Kick Start More Development

Bob Mussett, Executive Vice President, CBRE Limited
Benjamin Tal, Managing Director & Deputy Chief Economist, CIBC

National Real Estate Overview

Paul Morassutti, Chairman, CBRE Limited

Adaptive Reuse: How Developers are Assessing the Viability of Conversion in Today’s Environment
Pre-recorded video

Scott McCrea, President & CEO, Armour Group
Louis Lawen, President & CEO, Dexel Developments
Krissy Fry, Vice President, CBRE Capital (Canada) Inc.
Elliot MacNeil & Joe Nickerson Co-Founders, Sidewalk Developments

Local Market Update
Live panel discussion

Moderator:
Breanne Hay, Sales Associate, National Investment Team

Market Experts:
Chris Carter, Senior Vice President, CBRE Limited: Investment/Industrial
Rebecca Todd, Sales Associate, CBRE Limited: Retail
Mat Houston, Vice President, CBRE Limited: Urban Retail/Office

Opening Comments

Andrew Bergen

Senior Vice President, Managing Director, CBRE Limited

As Senior Vice President and Managing Director of CBRE's operations in Atlantic Canada, Andrew oversee CBRE's Halifax, Moncton, Fredericton and St. John's offices and is directly involved in all business lines including; advisory and transaction services, debt and structured finance, project management and valuation and advisory services.

Commercial real estate services have been the focus of his entire career. Andrew started at CBRE in 2008 as a Research Analyst in the Halifax office before moving to Calgary in 2010 to join Oxford Properties Group. During his tenure at Oxford, he held several positions including; overseeing a 1.5 million square foot AAA office portfolio in the downtown core and was responsible for executing the leasing strategy at Oxford Airport Business Park, a 4 million square foot multi-use development site. In 2016, Andrew returned to CBRE's Halifax office as Vice President and Sales Manager alongside co-founder and longtime Managing Director of Atlantic Canada, Bob Mussett.

Dissecting the Housing Supply Crisis and How to Kick Start More Development

Bob Mussett

Executive Vice President, CBRE Limited

Robert Mussett is an Executive Vice President and leads the National Investment Team and the National Apartment Group for Atlantic Canada. Bob was one of the founding broker’s of CBRE Atlantic in 2002. Bob’s 30+ years of experience and transactional accomplishments, give him unique insight into Atlantic Canadian real estate market trends.

Benjamin Tal

Managing Director and Deputy Chief Economist, CIBC

Benjamin is a member of the CIBC economic team that is responsible for analyzing macro economic developments and their implications for fixed income, equity, foreign exchange and commodities markets. He also acts in an advisory capacity to bank officers on issues related to wealth management, household credit and risk, and corporate credit and risk.
Well-known for his ground-breaking published research on topics such as labour market dynamics, real estate, credit markets, international trade and business economic conditions, Benjamin not only contributes to the conversation but also frequently sets the agenda.
Benjamin has close to 20 years of experience in the private sector advising clients, industry leaders, corporate boards, trade associations and governments on economic and financial issues. He is also a regular commentator in the media.

National Real Estate Overview

Paul Morassutti

Chairman, CBRE Limited

Paul Morassutti is Chairman of CBRE Limited and previously lead CBRE’s Valuation and Advisory team in Canada. Paul has a wide ranging background encompassing all facets of Institutional real estate and land development. He is also a member of CBRE’s Executive Management Committee and Canadian Executive Council.

Paul has authored numerous articles and has appeared in and on BNN, Bloomberg News, the CBC, The Globe & Mail, The Economist and the National Post among others. He is a frequent guest speaker at commercial real estate conferences and events and has developed and presented multi-day, in-house valuation training for groups such as Realpac, NAIOP, the Appraisal Institute of Canada and Brookfield Financial. Paul is a member of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and previously sat on the Advisory Board for the Schulich School of Business MBA Program in Real Estate and Infrastructure. He is also a past Director of Artscape where he chaired the Project Development committee.

Adaptive Reuse: How Developers are Assessing the Viability of Conversion in Today’s Environment

Krissy Fry

Vice President, CBRE Capital (Canada) Inc.

Krissy Fry joined CBRE in May 2020 as Vice President, Debt & Structured Finance in Atlantic Canada. She specializes in advising clients on structuring CMHC-insured financing solutions, leveraging the in-depth knowledge of the CMHC Mortgage Loan Insurance program that she acquired in the various senior management positions she held at Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation from 2006 to 2018.

Prior to joining CBRE, Krissy participated in the origination of just under $1 billion in CMHC-insured commercial mortgages over a two-year period with a Canadian mortgage services company. Although she arranges financing across all asset classes, Krissy has a particular focus on multi-unit residential properties including apartments, seniors housing, student housing and affordable housing across various financing types such as, land, construction, term take-out, purchase and refinance.

Krissy has worked with institutional investors, REITs and private developers in her 20 years working in the financial sector, having established herself as an expert in the multi-residential market and a trusted advisor to her clients and industry colleagues.

Scott McCrea

President & CEO, Armour Group

As the Chief Executive Officer of The Armour Group Limited, Mr. McCrea leads one of Atlantic Canada’s largest fully integrated real estate and investment companies. A life-long Haligonian, Mr. McCrea's deep-rooted understanding of the enduring impact of real estate development on communities comes naturally to him. He is the second generation to direct The Armour Group Limited, a family-held company whose roots in Halifax are anchored to the integration of the ownership, construction and management of their properties, which include many of the city's historic and traditional spaces. 

Louis Lawen

President & CEO, Dexel Developments

Louis G. Lawen is President & CEO of the Lawen Group which includes Dexel Developments, Dexel Architecture, Paramount Management and Preform Equipment which provide services to the family business of 1,500 residential units and 300,000 sq ft of commercial property in Halifax, Nova Scotia. With a focus of living well through providing housing, Louis has had the opportunity be involved in the development, design, delivery and management several premier award-winning residential buildings. Most recently, in 2023 Dexel won the Halifax Urban Design Award for the George Residence. In 2010, Dexel was awarded the Business of the Year Award by the Canadian Lebanese Chamber of Commerce. Louie won the 2012 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year (Real Estate).

Elliot MacNeil

Co-Founder, Sidewalk Developments

The Bruno Group of Companies was founded by Elliot MacNeil, a consummate builder and creative leader from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. From constructing his first tree-house as a young ‘un to developing his first property at the age of 22, Elliot has forged a reputation for creating unique homes, multi-family units, and commercial spaces. His team blends historic and contemporary architecture with total commitment to quality workmanship. Elliot currently serves on the Board of the Entrepreneurs Organization.

Joe Nickerson

Co-Founders, Sidewalk Developments

Joe Nickerson is a leader with a proven history of success managing a variety of real estate portfolios for high-net-worth families in Toronto, Alberta, and British Columbia. Joe has worked at RBC Capital Markets and for both private and public real estate holding companies ranging from $100M to $11B in AUM. Joe holds an MBA with a specialization in Real Estate & Infrastructure from Schulich School of Business and studied Private Equity & Finance at SDA Bocconi University in Milan, Italy.

Market Update Live Panel Discussion

Breanne Hay

Sales Associate, CBRE Limited

Breanne Hay is a member on the National Investment Team (NIT) Atlantic Canada. The team provides advisory services for clients on the acquisition and disposition of commercial and investment properties.

Since joining CBRE in 2015, Breanne has specialized in retail and has experience working with regional, national and international clients to provide site selection, land acquisition and investment sales services.

Chris Carter

Senior Vice President, CBRE Limited

Chris Carter is a Senior Vice President for CBRE's Atlantic Canadian operations and has been with the office since its opening in January 2002. Based in Halifax, Chris is involved in the sale of investment grade real estate throughout Atlantic Canada in all asset classes. Chris is a member of the National Investment Team and National Apartment Group. Prior to joining CBRE, Chris spent seven years with a regional full service real estate company, working on a wide range of items including leasing and management, brokerage and consulting.

Rebecca Todd

Sales Associate, CBRE Limited

Rebecca is an experienced retail specialist, with a demonstrated history of working with local, national and international retailers across the region. Rebecca works out of the Halifax office and has been with CBRE since 2010.

Rebecca has experience with both landlord and tenant representation, but focuses on occupier services. She and her team provide site selection and acquisition services to retailers throughout Atlantic Canada.

Mat Houston

Vice President, CBRE Limited

Mat Houston began his commercial brokerage career in 2007 and is currently a Vice President with the Atlantic Listing Team at CBRE. Over the past decade and a half, Mat has led the brokerage and advisory services for some of Atlantic Canada’s largest developments. Mat and his team specialize in Landlord and Vendor advisory for commercial sales and leasing in Halifax. Mat has an Urban Land Economics Degree from the University of British Columbia and Communications Degree from the University of Calgary.

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