Is LA’s Platform the future of retail?

In Culver City on the west side of Los Angeles, a shopping development is experimenting with retail, mixing traditional strategies with new. Called Platform, the new quarter defies many of the terms by which we define retail. It’s neither mall nor department store, neither traditional Main Street nor high street plumbed with independent owners. It’s an appealing array of these elements, with unusual merchandise partnerships and online connectivity thrown in. …

WATCH NOW! Your Tech is Only as Good as Your Data, Part 2

Raj Bhatti, Chief Information Officer at NKF, weighs in on the benefits of off-the-shelf software vs. custom-built solutions, as well as the limitations of vertical-specific technology.

Short-seller hits Porch Group with litany of claims, questions its accounting for Lowe’s stock sale

An investment firm with a short position in Porch Group, standing to benefit if its share price falls, released a report questioning the Seattle-based home services software company’s underlying business metrics, communications with investors, and accounting on a variety of fronts.

Auto and tech companies team to create open mobility ecosystem

SoftBank buys $72M of Compass stock

The tech giant, already Compass’ largest shareholder, purchased 4 million shares on April 6 at $18 per share, bringing its total investment to 132.4 million shares, according to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Sources said the transaction was made as part of Compass’ IPO.

3 Things You Have To Know About Electric Cars And Why Property Should Love Them

Electric vehicles are coming to a charging point near you, and they are coming sooner than you think thanks to government, which says fossil fuel car sales will be phased out by 2035, and to consumer pressure. Knight Frank have looked at what this means for UK real estate. These are the three key takeaways….

A new $100 million fund aims to end homelessness. Building housing is only part of it

Building housing is an answer to homelessness issues in cities, but it isn’t the only answer. For Community Solutions, a nonprofit focused on ending homelessness, that housing has to be backed by on-site supportive services that those most vulnerable to experiencing homelessness would need. With a new $100 million fund of social impact investment— augmented with federal pandemic funding that could multiply its efforts—the organization is rolling out an innovative approach to quickly and afford…

Local Alliances Put Some Cities on the Fast Track to Recovery

As vaccination rates increase and businesses start to reopen, cities across the country are cautiously moving forward with economic recovery plans to coax workers back into offices and revive real estate markets pummeled by the pandemic.

Investing in the Future: A VC’s Approach to New Tech in CRE, Part 2

Merritt Hummer, Partner at Bain Capital Ventures talks through the incremental approach to change, where she sees inefficiencies in the industry, and the hallmark of a great tech investor.

The New Disruptor on the Block: How Proptech is Changing the Way We Interact with Real Estate

Would you be willing to buy a home from a robot using only an app? As technology becomes more and more integrated into the design and real estate sector, that once an outlandish idea has become a reality. Only a decade ago, almost no one talked about technology and start-ups in the built environment. The real estate industry, which has historically lacked technological innovations compared to other sectors, is now taking a stance to reinvent itself as an industry that is more efficient, flexible…