Commercial Real Estate Investing

Data centers are the new gold rush. And just like 1849, the real money isn't in the mines. Amazon just paid $650 million for a single data center campus. Microsoft is spending $1.6B to restart Three Mile Island. Google locked up 500 MW of small modular reactors. Oracle's planning a 1 GW facility powered by three SMRs. They're not buying data centers. They're buying power plants with servers attached. Data centers are expected to consume 9% of US electricity by 2030, up from 3% today. That's a 400 TWh increase at 23% CAGR. The AI boom needs nuclear-level power to run. -Here's What Smart Money Sees- The big players are solving their AI power needs with nuclear. Makes sense—24/7 carbon-free power for 24/7 computing needs. But here's what most investors miss: This creates massive opportunities for everyone else. While Blackstone writes billion-dollar checks for nuclear facilities, we're looking at the ecosystem forming around them. -Where We're Finding Opportunities- 1 - Edge Data Centers 5G and IoT need low-latency computing near users. We're seeing 5-10 MW facilities in secondary cities as the sweet spot. Converted retail boxes with existing power infrastructure. $5-10M entry vs $500M+ for hyperscale. That's a niche we can actually play in. 2 - Power-Adjacent Real Estate Properties near substations. Land with utility easements. Sites adjacent to renewable generation. The big guys need massive power—we're looking for proximity to that power. These parcels were worthless five years ago. Not anymore. 3 - The Support Network Every data center creates demand for: - Hotels for traveling tech workers - Warehouse space for equipment staging - Office buildings for service companies - Training facilities for technicians We want to own what feeds these facilities, not compete with them. 4 - Secondary Market Plays Northern Virginia is at 1% vacancy. But Columbus? Omaha? Salt Lake City? Still room to run. We're following the hyperscalers to these markets—but targeting the support infrastructure they'll need, not the data centers themselves. 5 - The Conversion Opportunity Old manufacturing facilities. Abandoned big-box retail. Former printing plants. They have what data centers need: robust power infrastructure, loading docks, high ceilings. Conversion cost: $10-20M. Value post-conversion: $40-60M. -Why This Works- The giants need billion-dollar nuclear deals to power their AI dreams. We need $5-50M to capture the value they're creating around them. They're building the highways—we're buying the gas stations. Data center REITs like Digital Realty and Equinix offer liquid exposure. But the real opportunity? The picks and shovels of the data center gold rush. What's your take on investing around—not in—the data center boom?

Driving the Clown Car: Mistakes I made as a beginning Real Estate GP ('09-'12): 1. Creating a no-fee structure. Our sole LP thought he was aligning incentives. Having no $$ coming in put me under insane financial pressure, leading to a bunch of sub-optimal decisions. 2. Not always using construction permits. Got talked into this by a GC. Resulted in a ton of unnecessary fights with the city, liability, and loss of sleep. Never again. 3. Paying cash for services. Talked into this by that same GC. Created all kinds of headaches when it came to banking, taxes & accounting. Again, never again. 4. Not having air-tight accounting. We grew really fast, without strong accounting controls. Created a huge mess that cost an insane amount of money & time to untangle. Undermined our credibility with our single LP. 5. Sticking with one LP. Love the guy to this day, but it's dumb to base your whole business on one LP... if he decides he wants out and you haven't developed the necessary fund-raising skills / network to replace him, you're screwed. We certainly were. 6. Getting in business with family. Love my brother, but we're too close in age and too competitive with each other to be in business together. Still remember a neighbor in our original office complex yelling at us to stop yelling at each other. 7. Not having a clear decision-making hierarchy. See above. The docs we created made us both Managers of the umbrella LLC, with equal power. This meant that disagreements festered, because no one had final authority. 8. Picking a name without doing enough research. We were "Better Dwellings"... there was a well-established flipping co called "Better Shelter". Spent like 3 yrs telling people "no, we're the other 'better' guys." 9. Being slow to fire. We had pretty mediocre employees in two of three positions. I was afraid to fire them (for different reasons), and they chewed up enormous $$ without adding commensurate value. (Fortunately, the 3rd employee was spectacular - he's my partner at Adaptive.) 10. Giving our LP liquidation right. Even with all of the above, if we had just refinanced our portfolio in 2012 & held on, we would have made a fortune over the next 5-6 yrs. Instead, we sold, made a decent pre-tax profit, and watched helplessly as the value of those assets exploded.

There are more first-time Limited Partners (LPs) investing in first-time VC fund managers than ever before. Here's what these LPs need to know.   The minimums to invest in venture capital funds are plummeting.   Individuals who previously invested as angels are now investing in venture capital funds.   The venture capital space is not as opaque as it used to be, and more managers are launching firms.   More people than ever are writing their first LP checks into first-time funds. And while I think this is great for the venture community, there's a risk no one talks about:   When inexperience meets inexperience, things can go wrong.   Here's what that looks like for LPs:   📄 THE LIABILITY SURPRISE   An LP dispute arises. You look at the LPA and realize there are no proper indemnification clauses. The GP used a general corporate attorney who'd never formed a fund before.   Now you're exposed to personal liability that proper documentation would have prevented.   📊 THE ACCOUNTING CHAOS   Capital call comes in. The amount looks wrong. You ask for the waterfall calculation. Turns out the fund's accountant is using QuickBooks, not fund administration software, and botched the VC math.   Your K-1 arrives late. Then it arrives again, corrected. Then again. Your own tax filing is now a mess.   🤝 THE SIDE LETTER YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT   You committed at the same terms as everyone else. Or so you thought.   Months later you discover other LPs negotiated side letters with better economics, co-invest rights, or fee breaks. No one told you.   You're in the same fund, but not on the same terms.   ⚖️ THE COMPLIANCE PROBLEM THAT'S NOW YOURS   The fund used someone to help raise capital. That person took a percentage of what they brought in. Turns out they weren't a registered broker-dealer.   That's a securities violation. And now you're an LP in a fund with a regulatory problem.   ---   These aren't hypotheticals. We've seen them all.   If you're writing LP checks into emerging managers, you need to diligence this stuff before you commit.   Ask about the fund formation. Ask about the fund admin. Ask about side letters. Ask how they raised.   The best GPs will welcome the questions.   ---   ✍️ Myrto Lalacos Follow for more on launching, running, and investing in VC firms.

We just published our 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤– a practical guide to help companies move from climate ambition to executable clean electricity strategies across EU markets into the Sustainability Exchange https://lnkd.in/eK9PDr_C • 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬: it connects regulatory pressure (CSRD and national rules), investor expectations, and net‑zero targets with concrete choices on GOs, green tariffs, on‑site renewables, and PPAs. • 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬: it translates complex local market realities into clear pathways for site‑level action, risk management, and cost visibility. This playbook, developed by the Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA) through extensive research, aims to make it easier for SMEs in Europe (and any other company size too in early stages of their strategy) to accelerate progress on their carbon-free energy journey. The playbook walks teams through 𝚏̲𝚒̲𝚟̲𝚎̲ 𝚜̲𝚝̲𝚎̲𝚙̲𝚜̲: (1) clarifying the 𝐰𝐡𝐲, (2) understanding the 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐞, (3) mapping 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐦𝐬 by country, (4) designing a 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐨, and (5) turning it into an 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝𝐦𝐚𝐩 with timelines and responsibilities. If you’re responsible for decarbonising operations in Europe or need to make informed decisions on clean power procurement, I’d love your feedback and examples of how you’re tackling this in your own organisation! #Sustainability #CleanEnergy #Decarbonization #CorporateSustainability #theclimatepledge

Something’s happening in Navi Mumbai! It's a data centre vs residential tug-of-war. Every land transaction is setting newer pricing benchmarks ✨ Land prices here are no longer moving annually. They’re moving monthly. With residential now permitted, land has suddenly acquired a new identity. 🏗️➡️🏠 This is where the psychology of money gets interesting. When land gets a second life, every previous use has to be re-evaluated for its relevance. For many years, Thane-Belapur belt in Navi Mumbai had quietly become India’s data center nerve centre. Availability zones were planned, capital infused, power procured, fiber laid ⚡🧵 Over the last year, there is a change in thought pattern with developers and land owners. Data centres are no longer just competing with each other. They’re competing with homes. Same land. Very different economics. Very different emotions. Residential brings: ✨ faster liquidation 🧠 ✨ scale and FSI utilization 🏘️ ✨ social infrastructure Data centres bring: ⚡long-term economic infrastructure 🧱 ⚡low employment optics ⚡heavy utility consumption Globally, we’ve seen this story before 🎥 In Northern Virginia’s Data Center Alley, as residential crept closer, prices exploded and approvals slowed. But the availability zone didn’t shut down. In Arizona, large hyperscale projects were redirected after community and cost pressures. Moving closer to industrial and airport-linked corridors instead. Just silent strategy repositioning. What happens to existing zones? They are made to sweat harder. The sunk capex, network effects, power density and latency advantages are too valuable to walk away from. So operators and hyperscalers adapt. What usually happens next isn’t dramatic. It’s incremental. So, here’s my view- ✔️ Data centres will continue to compete with residential for the right land parcels for the next two years. As long as land remains available and prices are still within reason ⚖️ ✔️ Existing sites keep operating, often denser and more optimized ⚙️ ✔️ But incremental large scale hyperscale capacity begins to look outward, creating new zones, new rings, new corridors 🌍 Navi Mumbai, in that sense, is entering a new phase of maturity. The question is - How long can data centres and residential continue bidding for the same land before the next availability ring naturally forms? Because capital will eventually recalibrate. And cities, like people, don’t change overnight. They evolve - zone by zone, decision by decision. 🧠 Are we watching Navi Mumbai turn into a multi-ring data centre market in real time? What are your thoughts? PS: Pic clicked by me - Navi Mumbai, my favourite city in the country 🌆

Traditional CRE underwriting for data centers is dead. Industrial comps. Flex frameworks. Rent per square foot. Here are 6 things you need to know according to the country's most experienced data center developer: Daniel English is Managing Partner at Legacy Investing, where he's developed data centers for 15+ years. We spoke to him and Ivo van Breukelen from The Proptech Connection about what matters in this space. Here are 6 shifts investors must understand: 1/ Data centers are civic infrastructure now: Cities evaluate them like ports and power plants. Planning departments look at grid impact before land use. "They were always considered a niche asset class, like a marina or an RV campground," says English. But not anymore. 2/ The market is splintering: Hyperscale campuses in rural areas still dominate headlines. But AI inference needs low latency, not cheap land. That's pushing 10-50MW facilities into urban and metro buildings. Legacy is converting a Chicago office building into a 30-50MW AI center. There's a "missing middle" of these mid-sized metro facilities that's emerging. 3/ Power is the constraint: The question used to be: do you have the land? Now it's: can you secure power on a real timeline? English saw a developer misread utility sequencing. The tenant realized power wasn't coming on schedule and walked. "They didn't do their load letters right and wiped out $60M of stabilized value with two sentences." 4/ Governments control supply: Northern Virginia recorded an 80% increase in under-construction capacity in H1 2025. Dublin froze development and data centers now draw 21% of Ireland's electricity. Amsterdam's moratorium protects power for housing. The same 40MW project can be welcomed or blocked depending on the jurisdiction. 5/ Easy money is gone, but yields vary: Compression is concentrated in long-term credit-backed hyperscale deals. Outside that segment, yields remain variable. "Where you make your best money is when the markets are opaque," English says. 6/ Expertise is the moat: Most LPs can't evaluate transformer lead times, cooling topology, or interconnection strategy. "There's a huge divide between LPs that are doing data centers and those that aren't," says English. "And I'm not seeing much overlap." The investors winning are bringing operating partners and engineers into the process early. Everyone else is bidding on land with "data center potential" and wondering why they never close. Full letter linked in comments.

🔴 Oxford just confirmed what our clients have known for three years. The new "High Voltage" report from the University of Oxford — led by Professor Jan Rosenow — analysed 1.600+ global climate scenarios and reached one conclusion: up to 90% of industrial energy demand can be electrified with technology that already exists today! That's not a future state. That's a present-tense commercial decision. The report frames it as a security question, not just a climate one: every industrial process still running on gas or fuel oil is exposed to the next Hormuz closure, the next pipeline shutdown, the next price spike. We've had two major fossil fuel shocks in three years. The question is no longer whether to electrify — it's how fast, and who pays for it. (Spoiler: it doesn't have to be you!) Our clients in food & beverage, chemicals and manufacturing cut their energy bills by 15% to 30% — without putting a single euro of CAPEX on the balance sheet. A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) or Energy-as-a-Service model covers the investment. You capture the savings from day one. There's a second benefit the Oxford report touches on but underplays: grid congestion. The behind-the-meter approach — combining rooftop and ground-mounted solar, Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and smart load management — means you generate, store and consume your own energy on-site. Less grid dependency. Fewer capacity requests. You simply step around the queue. An integrated Energy Management System (EMS) does the heavy lifting: it shifts load, optimises self-consumption in real time, and reduces your exposure to wholesale price swings — automatically. CFOs and operations leaders: if your energy bill is a line item your board asks about every quarter, this paper is worth 20 minutes of your time. So is a short conversation. Drop a comment or send me a DM — happy to share what this concretely looks like for your type of operation. 📄 Full Oxford report in the comments. #IndustrialElectrification #EnergyIntensive #CFO #EnergyStrategy #BehindTheMeter #PPA #EnergyAsAService #Decarbonisation #PerPetumEnergy

My day to day conversations are shifting fast. Data centers and renewable generators are fighting over the same land, reshaping U.S. energy development, and driving up costs that go far beyond the energy sector. The numbers tell the story Microsoft paid $3.75M per acre in Prince William County, VA. Google paid $741K per acre in New Albany, Ohio. In Wisconsin, Microsoft accumulated over 1,200 acres in Racine County for a single AI campus. These aren't outliers, they're the new market reality, pulling large tracts of land out of reach for generation projects, substations, transmission corridors, and the communities that depend on that land. ERCOT's large-load queue has exploded to ~226 GW, nearly 4x in a year, with data centers representing 73% of requests. Meanwhile, 1,999 generation interconnection requests are in process, 77% of them solar and storage projects competing for the same parcels near high-voltage transmission nodes. The collision that matters Data centers need land near transmission, substations, and fiber. Renewables need the same. Communities need it for housing, agriculture, and economic development. Only one can occupy a parcel, and the highest bidder wins every time. Both renewable developers and local communities are being outbid by hyperscale capital before anyone else gets to the table. Two questions every energy developer should be sitting with If you're in generation, what happens when hyperscale capital locks down the land and interconnection point you needed by moving faster and paying more? If you're in data centers, what happens when your land strategy becomes someone else's stranded project, and the power you need never gets built? Every AI query, every model trained, every data center built requires land, power, and transmission access. We're advancing toward a more powerful grid and a more intelligent world, while quietly making the ground underneath everyone else more expensive to stand on. The developers who come out on top won't just be the ones moving fastest. They'll be the ones who understand that land connects energy, housing, food, and community stability, and build their strategies with that full picture in mind. Is anyone else feeling this? How are you navigating this? #EnergyTransition #DataCenters #RenewableEnergy #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Infrastructure

Price volatility is procurement's biggest enemy. Stop letting market uncertainty control your costs. Here's how to gain control: 1/ Traditional Approaches ✅ Reactive purchasing works in stable markets ❌ But fails when prices fluctuate unexpectedly 2/ Strategic Hedging ✅ Options, futures, and swaps spread risk effectively ❌ Yet many avoid these powerful tools 3/ Forward Contracts ✅ Lock in prices for predictable budgeting ❌ Most wait until prices spike to consider them Smart procurement requires: - Continuous cost monitoring - Strategic risk management - Regular strategy evaluation - Proactive market analysis The solution is clear: Better tools = Better control Forward-thinking leaders don't wait for price stability. They create it. Remember: - Planning beats reacting - Market volatility is inevitable - Protection matters more than perfect timing Your procurement success depends on action. Start implementing these strategies now. Don't wait for the next price shock: Plan ahead. Hedge smart. Secure your costs.

The Strait of Hormuz - through which 20% of the world's oil and LNG flows - is under blockade. Iran and Israel have struck each other's energy infrastructure. Qatar's Ras Laffan, the world's largest LNG export facility, has sustained serious damage. Crude oil prices, European gas prices, gasoline gas prices have surged. Central banks that were expecting rate cuts are now pricing in rate hikes. Gold has dropped 15% in three sessions as investors liquidate liquid assets. Equity markets are in decline. The UK 10-year yield has exceeded 5%. In the middle of this chaos, here is what I keep coming back to: The strongest argument for accelerating clean energy procurement has never been ideological. It has always been economic. Every spike in fossil fuel prices demonstrates the same truth: dependence on globally traded hydrocarbons is a structural risk to any business's cost base. Meanwhile, Google just signed a 20-year, 2.7 GW clean energy deal with DTE Energy for a new Michigan data center - funding 1.6 GW of solar, 400 MW of battery storage, and 300 MW of additional clean resources, with costs shifted entirely away from residential ratepayers. That is what strategic energy procurement looks like in 2026: long-term, fixed-price, clean, and insulated from geopolitical volatility. The companies locking in renewable PPAs and building diversified clean energy portfolios today are not just reducing emissions. They are managing the risk that the current crisis makes painfully visible. #CleanEnergy #EnergyTransition #Renewables #PPAs #EnergyPrices #CorporateProcurement #RiskManagement