MEREDA’s Forecast Conference highlights Maine’s Real Estate Industry

Submitted by Larry Eliason

Nearly 1,000 of Maine’s real estate and development professionals gathered at the Holiday Inn By the Bay in Portland on Feb. 27 to learn about the latest trends and outlooks for the development and real estate economy at the Maine Real Estate & Development Association’s (MEREDA’s) Forecast Conference and Member Showcase.

The Forecast Conference featured a lineup of industry experts – heavy hitters from all corners of the industry. The day kicked off with a presentation from Chris Mallett, EdD, the Chief Administrative Officer at Northeastern University’s Roux Institute. His talk was entitled “Partnering for Maine’s Next Frontier” and focused on the forces shaping the economy of today and tomorrow in Maine. Mallett spoke about how Maine can continue to be a compelling place for people and business to move to, outlining the advantages the state has for competing in a global marketplace, as well as Portland’s potential for becoming a global tech hub like Seattle or Toronto. With the room full of real estate professionals, Mallett extolled the audience to think about how to create more professional opportunities for students. He explained that the Roux Institute and other higher ed organizations bring a wealth of diverse talent to the state, but “we need help retaining them.” Mallet urged the audience to think about how they can help create more economic opportunities to keep young people here. He then provided an overview of the new Portland campus, an exciting reenvisioning of the historic B&M Beans factory site. He concluded by encouraging more collaboration, saying that when we work together, “the possibilities are unlimited.”

With 86,000 housing units needed in Maine by 2030, Elizabeth Frazier of Pierce Atwood highlighted the legislative roadmap for housing production in Maine, calling out the need for government processes and capacity to be streamlined. For the upcoming legislative session, she explained that MEREDA will focus on three areas: workforce housing density, historic tax credits, and statutory subdivision review.

James Marple, a Senior Economist from TD Bank provided an economic outlook for 2025.

“It’s a difficult time to be an economic forecaster,” he began in reference to the current environment of uncertainty. Highlighting how the economy has outperformed expectations in the last two years, Marple said the recent administration’s focus on tariffs and immigration will have an impact on the economy. He predicted that the economy will still grow in the year ahead, but it will likely be slower with some quarterly volatility. On mortgage rates, Marple’s expectation was that the Fed will cut rates if we don’t see a trade war.

The second afternoon session featured a presentation on Municipal Trends with Mark Adams of Sebago Technics, and Dan Stevenson of the City of Westbrook. Moderated by Gary Vogel, the group examined impediments to development at the municipal level and what some municipalities are doing to support growth.

Adams, whose firm works with many municipalities on about 1,200 projects each year, talked about how staffing shortages and high turnover at the municipal level have impacted the ability to move projects forward. Citing the recent changes in federal funding sources, Stevenson predicted that there will be problems for projects with longer time financing horizons and recommended that municipalities “be careful from this point forward what federal funding you rely on.”

The final group of afternoon sessions included a Financing Trends panel with Steve deCastro of Maine Community Bank, Andrew Silsby of Kennebec Savings Bank, and David Hulit of Port 51 Lending. Moderated by Kim Twitchell of NBT Bank. The group discussed the regulatory environment and the impact of the new administration, along with the changing yield curve and how banks review financing requests and talked about how borrowers can educate themselves

At the end of the day, as MEREDA members continued to gather in conversation, it was clear that this is a group that will continue to find ways to work together to develop a responsible and sustainable future for Maine.

Larry Eliason is a Commercial Broker with Butts Commercial Brokers, 1265 Roosevelt Trail, Raymond. He can be reached at 207-415-2112 or by email at LarryEliasonBCB@gmail.com. Visit www.ButtsCommercialBrokers.com <