Industry Contributors & Editorial
Feed the Machine: AI Could Unjam San Francisco’s 280-Day Permitting Nightmare
The city knows its building codes better than anyone. The problem is it takes 280 days to prove it. What if a computer...
An Approval is Not a Building Permit
Why the hand-wringing over Google’s empty San Jose acreage misses the point entirely. By Billy the Broker (I just want to stay anonymous)...
Bounded by Sea, Strangled by Trusts
Every acre we preserve is an acre we can’t build on—and the housing math is catching up By Billy the Broker (I just...
Amazon’s Empty Chairs
By Billy the Broker (I just want to stay anonymous) To put the size of Amazon’s office downsizing in perspective, one of its...
Housing Handcuffs
As AI startups lease luxury apartments and offer proximity bonuses to keep workers steps from their desks, San Francisco’s hottest perk is starting...
The Morning After and How The Cycle Turned While You Were Sleeping
After two years of paralysis, capital is clearing its throat and deal volume is stirring — but this cycle rewards scalpels, not sledgehammers....
The Great Nashville-San Francisco Switcheroo
By Billy the Broker (I just want to stay anonymous) If you need proof that God has a sense of humor, consider this: Oracle can’t...
Vanderbilt’s Choice: A Win for San Francisco and the Bay Area
By Vladimir Bosanac, publisher of The Registry The hand-wringing over Vanderbilt University’s decision to establish its West Coast campus in Showplace Square rather...
San Francisco’s Commercial Real Estate Market: A 2025 Comeback Sets the Stage for 2026
By Hans Hansson, President of Starboard CRE After years of turbulence marked by pandemic-driven vacancies and economic uncertainty, San Francisco’s commercial real estate...
3D Printed Houses and Other Fairy Tales
By Billy the Broker (I just want to stay anonymous) The prophecy was always that technology would save us. And here we are in 2026,...
The $200 Billion Question: Where Does Your Tariff Tax Go?
By Billy the Broker (I just want to stay anonymous) The Trump administration is crowing about collecting $200 billion in tariff revenues this year. Customs...
McNellis on CMBS: “Commercial Mortgage BS”
By John McNellis This essay is taken from John’s forthcoming 3rd edition of Making it in Real Estate. I was leaning against the bar...
