Jeffrey Reder, MD at CenterSquare Investment Management – Conviction in the Middle Market

This week, I sat down with Jeffrey Reder to unpack how the US real estate market is evolving, why the middle market is delivering some of the most compelling opportunities today, and what it really takes to outperform through multiple cycles.

Jeff began his career in corporate finance at Salomon Brothers in New York before transitioning into direct real estate. Since joining CenterSquare in 2006, he has helped build one of the most respected value-add platforms in the country. Today he serves as Portfolio Manager for the firm's Value-Added Fund series and leads a nationwide team focused on sourcing, underwriting and executing industrial, residential and essential-service retail strategies.

We explore how capital, pricing, and investor behaviour are shifting, why discipline around basis and underwriting has never mattered more, and how CenterSquare consistently finds opportunities others overlook.

Key Topics Covered In This Episode

✅ Off-Market Edge – How CenterSquare sources more than 80 percent of its transactions off market and why clarity around the "buy box" creates meaningful alpha

✅ The Power of Small Is Mighty – Why infill industrial, essential-service retail and smaller, operationally intensive assets continue to outperform in today's market

✅ Cycle Discipline – How the team identified valuation risk early and exited multifamily positions before cap rates moved, protecting performance and investor capital

✅ Investment Frameworks – The Five Cs and Three As guiding CenterSquare's philosophy and how they shape conviction, capital deployment and exit discipline

✅ US Market Opportunity – What global LPs are saying about deploying into the US and why forward supply dynamics may set up one of the most interesting entry points in years

✅ Building a Platform – Lessons from 20 years growing a national value-add business, developing talent, and building repeatable processes that drive consistency

And of course, I asked Jeff the big question:

Who are the People, what Property, and which Place would you invest in if you had £500 million to deploy?

If you have thoughts or questions about this episode, drop them in the comments. I would love to hear your take.

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