Industrial Real Estate’s Best Years Could Still Be Ahead

About this episode

In this episode of the Matthews Mentality Podcast, Kyle Matthews sits down with Michael Brennan, Chairman and Managing Principal of Brennan Investment Group, co-founder and former CEO of First Industrial Realty Trust, and one of the most accomplished operators in industrial real estate. Mike's argument is that industrial is the rare property type technology has helped rather than hurt. E-commerce built the warehouses. Data centers absorb land. And robotics and automation are pulling manufacturing back onshore, because once low-cost labor stops being decisive there is less reason to be in Mexico or China. As he puts it, the best news for industrial may still be ahead. He has earned the right to a view. Mike bought his first building at 22, in October of 1979 — a six-flat and warehouse on the South Side of Chicago for $53,000, with effectively nothing down. He collected rents weekly and was his own janitor. Fifteen years later he helped take First Industrial Realty Trust public and delivered 40 consecutive quarters as its CEO. After leaving in 2008 over a disagreement with the board he started again, and Brennan Investment Group is now the second largest privately held industri