There’s little doubt that the pandemic has had a wide-reaching effect on the commercial and residential real estate and development landscape.

On Thursday during the Business Record’s annual CRE virtual forum, eight panelists described how the pandemic has affected the various sectors of the construction and development industries and the outlook for the next year. Topics touched on included financing of proposed projects, changes occurring in offices to make environments safe for workers, rising costs and availability of construction materials, and housing affordability.

Also during the forum, Mark Rupprecht, president of R&R Realty Group, was introduced as the Business Record’s 2021 Iowa State University Ivy College of Business Real Estate Professional of the Year.

Below are the speakers and the questions they were asked. Links to individual panelists’ responses are provided after the questions.

Randy Ripperger, Polk County assessor  
How has the pandemic affected property assessments in Polk County, and has one area been harder hit than others? Watch here

Jennifer Cooper, vice president and manager, Bankers Trust Co.
How has the criteria for providing financing for a project changed since before COVID to now? And what types of projects are banks willing to lend money for, and what types of projects are getting a hard “no”? Watch here

Brad Deets, development services directors, city of Waukee
How has the pandemic affected the pace of development in Waukee — were projects stalled or put on indefinite hold? If so, are developers starting to bring projects into the city for review? Watch here

Dan Drendel, principal, Slingshot Architecture
How has the pandemic affected designs for new or remodeled office buildings and other spaces? Watch here

Paul Rupprecht, president, R&R Real Estate Advisors
Industrial and warehouse development is exploding in the metro area. Explain why and what the outlook is for more industrial and warehouse development in the coming 12 months. Watch here

Tyler Dingel, senior vice president, CBRE|Hubbell Commercial
E-commerce will continue to grow even after the pandemic. How will selling to consumers directly online mesh with maintaining a brick-and-mortar presence? And a follow-up: Are we likely to see more or less new retail development in the coming 24 months? Watch here

Kalen Ludwig, new construction specialist at Peoples Co. and president of Home Builders Association of Greater Des Moines
The cost of lumber and other raw materials is rising. What are experts predicting will happen with material costs in the coming 12 months, and how will that impact home construction costs and other development that involves wood products? Watch here

Kim Bakey, CEO, HomeServices of Iowa
The pandemic ignited a housing boom. How is this boom different from the one that occurred in the early 2000s, and are some populations being priced out of the market? Watch here