Not in recent memory have there been so many factors contributing to the state of the real estate market. Segmentation has complicated interpretation and while there are many trap doors, there are also path to huge success. Join us to learn where to stand as we share ways to not only make it through but prosper as well.
Registration:
IMA Members Dinner: $85
Non-IMA Member Dinner: $95
Panelists:
Ray Ruiz
Managing Director
JLL
ray.ruiz@am.jll.com
Ray is a Managing Director with JLL, in 2010, he launched and managed JLL’s official expansion into the Long Island suburban market. Ray continues to develop business across the firm’s platforms, executing transactions on behalf of investors and occupiers throughout the market.
Ray has been an active participant in the Long Island real estate market for over 33 years. Throughout his career, he has acted as strategic advisor to pension funds, REITs, municipalities, and developers. Ray counts many top Long Island companies among his clients and has arranged large transformative headquarter requirements on their behalf. His work initiating and executing lease and sales transactions for commercial office, medical, and multifamily properties exceeds 50 million square feet.
Prior to joining JLL, Ray was a senior vice president with CB Richard Ellis’ Long Island regional office for 18 years. He also held positions at Koll Real Estate and Cushman & Wakefield on Long Island.
Ray holds a Bachelor of Science in economics from New York University. He is a current member of the Commercial Industrial Broker Society (CIBS) and previously served as a board member as well as president in 2007 and 2008. Most recently, Ray served as a board member for the Real Estate Institute at Stony Brook University, College of Business (REI). He has been awarded the CoStar Power Broker award consistently from 2007 through 2019. Ray has sat and a continues to be invited as guest panel speaker on the subject commercial real estate market.
A proponent of the arts, Ray is a member of several NYC museums including the MOMA, Guggenheim, and the Whitney. In his spare time, he enjoys painting as well as playing guitar with classical and flamenco music being his favorite genres.
John Finn
Director, Leasing & Acquisitions
Damianos Realty
jfinn@drgrealty.com
John Finn is a partner and the Director of Leasing and Acquisitions at Damianos Realty Group LLC (DRG). Since joining DRG in 1998, he has proven to be an invaluable asset to the firm. John has played a pivotal role in DRG’s growth and expansion, successfully negotiating numerous transactions for the 30 properties in the firm’s impressive commercial portfolio, all while overseeing day-to-day operations.
John serves as the Town of Smithtown’s designee for the Suffolk County Planning Commission, a position to which he was nominated by the County Executive and confirmed by the Suffolk County Legislature. His responsibilities at the Commission include establishing a Comprehensive Plan for Suffolk County, reviewing site plans and zoning actions, and reporting annually to the Legislature on the County’s status. John and his team at DRG were honored with the prestigious “Developer of the Year” award by The Association for a Better Long Island and The Commercial Industrial Broker Society for their projects at 1377 Motor Parkway, a 170,000 sq ft Class A corporate office building in Islandia, and 100 Hospital Road, a 54,000 sq ft state-of-the-art medical building in Patchogue.
John is also a recipient of the Top Commercial Real Estate Power Brokers award from Costar, the largest commercial real estate information company in the United States, and is an Associate Member of the Commercial Industrial Broker’s Society. He is actively involved in charitable and fundraising events throughout Long Island, including the YMCA of Long Island, where he has served on the Corporate Board of Directors for over a decade. An avid golfer, John resides in St. James with his wife and two children.
Thomas DeLuca
Managing Director
Cushman & Wakefield
Thomas.deluca@cushwake.com
Thomas DeLuca, who embarked on his tenure with Cushman & Wakefield in 2015, has since carved out a niche for himself as a leading industrial real estate advisor across Nassau and Suffolk Counties. His reputation as one of Long Island’s preeminent industrial advisors is underpinned by his profound expertise in sophisticated financial strategies, his acumen in intricate financial analyses, and deep-rooted encyclopedic knowledge of the LI industrial sector. DeLuca's approach is unwaveringly client-centric, ensuring that every advisory service is meticulously aligned with his clients’ goals, timelines, and strategic objectives. Alongside his dedicated team, he crafts bespoke solutions for intricate transactions and devises market strategies that empower clients to make decisions that are both informed and strategic.
With a repertoire that includes strategic management and underwriting of investment properties, insightful advisement to landlords and tenants, leading land development projects, and guiding the acquisition and disposition of industrial properties, DeLuca’s breadth of expertise is unparalleled. Serving a diverse clientele that ranges from private and institutional investors to Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), corporations, and occupiers at both the local and regional levels, DeLuca's profound expertise and strategic foresight render him an indispensable asset to those navigating the intricacies of the complex industrial sector domain.
Beyond his tangible contributions to the field, Thomas DeLuca’s career is also distinguished by a series of professional accolades that highlight his influence and excellence in the industrial real estate arena. These honors, awarded by respected industry bodies and publications, recognize DeLuca’s exceptional skill in navigating and shaping the market, his visionary leadership, and his unwavering commitment to his clients’ success. Although the specifics of these awards are numerous, each serves as a testament to DeLuca’s standing as a thought leader and a key driver of innovation within the industrial real estate sector. This recognition not only reflects his individual achievements but also his role in elevating the standards and practices of industrial real estate advisory services.
Moderator:
David Pennetta
Executive Managing Director
Cushman & Wakefield
david@cushwake.com
Executive Managing Director of C&W of LI, Inc. Responsible for team business, implementation of key business initiatives, leadership, client relationship management, business development, and recruitment. Ensuring delivery of the full array of C&W’s creative and innovative services to clients. He serves with an emphasis on Corporate Representation with sub-specialties in Land Sales, Government Affairs, Economic Development, and Tax and Incentive procurement. Mr. Pennetta is an Omnichannel broker working on Regionally Significant Projects.
Graduated with honors from New York University and received a Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Real Estate. He earned the NYU Founders Day Award, Presidents List and is a member of the Alpha Sigma Lambda honors society.
Award-winning broker and recognized Subject Matter Expert. Appeared on TV CBS Channel 2, Channel 21, NPR Radio, and frequently contributing to the Wall Street Journal, NY Times, The Real Deal, LIBN (Opinion & Editorial), Newsday, Innovate LI (Opinion), and spoken for many LI business groups including SUNY Stony Brook, Hofstra University, CIBS. Co-President for the Commercial Industrial Brokers Society, holds a seat on the Huntington Planning Board and a NYS Licensed Instructor and Court recognized expert witness and approved arbiter for the CIBS Mediation and Arbitration Committee. Energeia Partnership Regional Stewardship Graduate (2008-2010), Executive Board Member and Luncheon and Symposium Moderator of the Real Estate Institute of SUNY Stony Brook (REI).
$100m in transaction 2023. Major Transactions: Suffolk County DSS, DOH, PD and Emergency Services leases totaling 200k SF. 290 Expressway Drive Medford, sold 12 acres Land sale. Sale of 5 Brayton Ct Commack 30k SF and 1590 Lakeland Ave Bohemia 50k SF. Hired for leasing and sale of Station Yards Ronkonkoma 360k SF.