- 4 days ago
On today’s episode, Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler talks with Brena Nath, vice president of events and community, to talk about the topics and speakers for the Housing Economic Summit and other upcoming events.
Related to this episode:
https://events.housingwire.com/Housing-Economic-Summit/home
Related to this episode:
https://events.housingwire.com/Housing-Economic-Summit/home
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NewsTranscript
00:00Welcome, everyone. My guest today is Brenna Nath, Vice President of Events and Community
00:11at HousingWire, to talk about what we have planned for the Housing Economic Summit and
00:16why you should care. First, I want to thank our sponsor, Trust in Will, for making this
00:21episode possible. Brenna, welcome back to the podcast.
00:24I am excited to be here with you. Always nice to chat about some of the things that we're
00:30working on. I know. And, you know, we are the original podcast partners in crime here,
00:34so we can't forget that. The original podcast partners in crime. If someone wants some budgeting
00:40tips from Sarah and I, I have a few of those before the holidays. I think we should just
00:45scratch everything that we want to talk about instead of talking about our finances. Do a
00:49girlfriend's episode. I love it. Well, what I wanted to talk to you about is we are gearing
00:53up for the Housing Economic Summit, so we're going to talk about that. But just in general,
00:58over the last year, there's been sort of a big sea change. And we've always, you know,
01:03we've done events since like 2017, did some great events. But over the last year, year and a half,
01:10we're now becoming known for events. Like people are like, oh, you guys and events, like it's just
01:14a big deal. I feel like we're in sort of a different category these days. That's down to
01:19you and your team. You know, you guys have done so, so great. But with that, I really want to dig
01:25into, especially on the Housing Economic Summit, there have been some strategic things that you've
01:30done as you've been planning this one to make sure that it's, you know, so relevant for the people
01:36coming. And it could not come at a better time. I mean, this subject at this time, it's going to be
01:41incredible. So let's start from the beginning. Tell us where and when that the summit's going to
01:45be. It's going to be in Dallas, Texas on February 10. I'll share a fun fact here that I know someone's
01:52not going to want me to share, but it's on February 10, which is also our CEO's birthday. I have to get
01:58that fact in there. So you can't forget it. So Housing Economic Summit at the George W. Bush
02:04Presidential Library on February 10. We really enjoy this venue because it creates such a good space for
02:10learning with the auditorium, but still lends itself to networking when you're at lunch.
02:15Easy to get to place. You feel like you want to learn when you're there because it has that
02:21academic leaning. But back at the Presidential Library, February 10 in Dallas.
02:26Okay. And we are pretty excited about the lineup of speakers that we have. So for one thing,
02:32something that we're excited about is we're going to have Barry Habib and Logan Motoshami on the same
02:37stage. We're very, they're going to give their own economic talks, but then we're going to get
02:41them together. We're going to have a Q&A. I think that's going to be really fun.
02:45Really fun. And just insightful. I put in a message earlier that there is something really important in
02:51making sure that people know you can have a two-way conversation with us, whether that's, you know,
02:57responding back to emails and letting us know, letting me know the topics that you want to hear
03:02throughout the day, but also creating space for that within the event. We haven't historically been
03:07able to open up for Q&A due to the way it flowed, but really wanted to make sure we had that opportunity
03:13at the Housing Economic Summit. This is specifically set up in February because we know everyone's looking
03:20at what's going on for the year. And there's a lot that you can't necessarily forecast. We really
03:26are trying to create kind of what can you do to, I'm going to butcher the same, but that idea of like
03:32teach a man to fish. Can I teach you to learn for the signals that you're supposed to be looking for?
03:38And then also ask those questions to Barry Habib and Logan Motoshami at the end. And then ask me
03:43anything on the housing market at the end to figure out, okay, I know you said this, but is this how I
03:48should think about interest rates? How much should I lean into this kind of idea of what's going on in
03:52the Fed and letting you kind of pull additional levers that you need to know with both of them?
03:57When I tell you, I mean, everyone here listens to Logan a lot on the podcast, so I don't need to,
04:02I don't need to clarify just how good he is at kind of addressing and being able to answer what
04:08you need to know to do what I just said, give you the signal. I love that. So when we were talking
04:13about what we should, you know, sort of the theme of this one or like, what's the, what's the overall
04:18thing that we're keeping in our mind as we, as we do all of the planning, as you do all the planning
04:23and that getting the signal from the noise was the thing that really stood out from what we were
04:27hearing from our audience. And also just like the time we're in, right, we have a ton of data.
04:33We have a ton of data. There's a whole bunch of data out there. So it's like, okay, but the point
04:37is not like, here's a bunch of data. The point is, what do you need to take from the data to make your
04:42business better, successful, growing, making decisions faster? Like that's, that's sort of the North star
04:48when we think about how we organize events. Yeah. It's another way to phrase that, that I've
04:54been really leaning on lately is taking things from data to decisions that through line between
04:59the two data is a theme in this conference. It's not just about forecast, but it's about the data
05:04that you're going to glean from it. And then I try to, we as a team really think about, we don't want
05:11you just to come into this room and get this information at any of our conference. We're really
05:15trying to craft whether that's through networking opportunities, getting to put your name in a room
05:19with other like-minded peers and ensuring that you always have an answer to that question of like,
05:24what do I get out of attending? Like, what should I be taking away? How do I apply? How does this grow
05:29my business? How does this grow my margins? We were very aware of what's going on in this space. And so
05:33for the housing economic summit specifically, it's knowing here's the data and hearing the knowledge
05:40based session. Sarah already mentioned Barry Habib, Logan Modashami. We also have Jessica
05:45Louts. She's the deputy chief economist at the National Association of Realtors. We have Lisa
05:50Sudervant, who's with Bright MLS. We have Odetta Cushy, who's with First American. We have these
05:56amazing economists coming on stage, ensuring that you kind of get this very good overview about what
06:02to expect in the market in 2026. And we're calling these our knowledge based sessions. Then after those,
06:09we don't want you to end the discussion there. We want to turn them into tactical applications of
06:14how do you use this data to make smarter, faster decisions. And to help you facilitate that kind
06:21of game plan after the event, we have tactical leaders on stage. So we have Joe Pana Bianco.
06:26If anyone is paying attention to what AnyMac is doing, they're a growth grower right now, not to be
06:32redundant in that phrase, but AnyMac is someone that we've heard from our audience that they want to
06:37hear on stage. What is some of the play that you're doing? He is a great data-driven leader
06:41who, I mean, I was talking to him the other day as we were kind of working on some quotes for the
06:45event. And he mentioned, it's not that the importance of data is new. It's that people
06:50have never been paying attention to it. And now is the time that they need to be looking at it because
06:53they're realizing the cost of not paying attention to it. You no longer have a choice not to look at the
06:58data. And that's, I think, the importance of what our audience needs to see, that the people who are
07:03growing aren't just growing. Joe Pana Bianco is constantly looking at what's happening into the
07:08market so he can see what he needs to do as a business leader to go forward. And we're seeing
07:13that in other people we have on stage. We also have Nora. I might mispronounce her last name a
07:18little bit, but Nora Guerra. She's the Senior Vice President of Community Lending Solutions at Guild
07:22Mortgage. She's another example. We were talking to industry leaders in this space for who are other
07:27data-driven leaders. And her name came up as someone who is using the data to grow business and
07:32community lending and knowing what is needed to serve that market. And so those are just two
07:37mortgage examples of what people are doing to not just hear the forecast. It's not enough. We don't
07:42want you to just come in and be like, okay, cool. That's what's happening. No, it's you get the
07:46knowledge-based sessions and think, this is what I need to do to apply it. This is how I create
07:51tactical implementation from what I'm hearing to stay resilient. You and I talked a lot about
07:57resilience in this market. That's a huge word and agile in 2026.
08:02Love that you brought up the tactical sessions because this was one of the pivots that you made
08:07this year to just go, okay, while that's always part of what we're thinking about, for this one
08:13specifically, you're like, we're making it very overt. We're like, here's information. Here's someone
08:19who we see applying it. And I think we have a real advantage there as a media company because we know
08:25who's doing what. We're writing up who's making money, what they're doing, the moves they're
08:32making. It can be obvious to us first before other people. And we're talking to leaders all
08:38the time. So we're like, this is what they want to know. This is who they're thinking they want to
08:43know more from. So I love that as you look at speaker selection too. It's a long process.
08:50It's a long process. And just to answer a question that I feel passionate about, which is
08:55along the lines of how do I set myself up for success if I'm attending this event? I want to
09:00ensure that you're sitting in that seat and you're capitalizing what you need. And that playbook that I
09:05hope everyone takes into account is the first session of the day. I just mentioned Nora. The
09:10other person that we have on stage is Dan Duffy. He's the founder and CEO at United Real Estate Group.
09:15They're a top, according to the Real Trends verified list, they're a top ranked brokerage.
09:20And Dan is just like Joe Pena Bianco on the mortgage side. He's just like Nora on the mortgage
09:24side. He is a data-driven leader and cutting through a lot of noise with those signals that
09:30he needs. And so we start the day off with Dan, with Nora saying, okay, before you go into the days,
09:36because right after their session is Logan's session and Barry Habib's session. So before we get into
09:41that, let me tell you what lens you need to be looking at each session throughout the day.
09:46Here, take your notebook out, take your pen, write these things down for how I'm taking this data and
09:51applying it. Because I don't want this to just be talk. I want it to be, okay, I see what they're
09:56saying on stage. This is how leaders of growth are doing it. And so the first session kicks that off.
10:01Clayton Collins, our CEO, is moderating it to ensure that he, I mean, he's a business leader too,
10:05has to take those angles into account. So he kind of sets up that playbook, kind of giving you,
10:10in some ways, like this formula that you need to think through for each session.
10:14And then we go into the day with our forecasts, our knowledge-based sessions. And then within those,
10:19we'll have more tactical-based sessions. Joe's session will come into play. We have more real
10:22estate leaders joining us on stage. We have a session from the capital markets angle at lenders,
10:27how they're approaching the industry, but gives you this playbook to run with. And so that's how you
10:33can set yourself up for success when you attend, that you clearly have this business hat on when attending,
10:39along with the educational mindset.
10:42I think that is incredible. And you brought up a point that bears repeating, and that is,
10:47you know, you're talking about mortgage and real estate. So maybe talk about who this conference
10:53is geared toward and who you're seeing sign up.
10:56Yeah. Yeah. Thanks for asking that. It's a big, I want to make sure people know that this event is
11:04built for mortgage and real estate leaders. Anyone who's looking at mapping out their business for
11:092026 and beyond and wants to stay agile and resilient as an operational leader, as a business
11:15leader, someone who's maybe in the capital market space as well, like how do you do that? This event
11:19is built for you. So on the real estate side, I already mentioned Dan Duffy, but you also have
11:23NARS Jessica Lout. She is in the pulse on what's happening. She had a data fact the other day that
11:28floored me, Sarah. I'm sure you've seen this now,
11:31but the fact that the average age of a first-time homebuyer right now is 40, 40 years old,
11:39that is still millennial. I will say it's a millennial. So you seem a lot older to you than
11:44it does now. It's still the millennial demographic. So in the past when, you know, you and I have been
11:52here for over 13 years, roughly 13 years. So that data point was, you know, more, more vast then,
11:58but just that says something that it's, it's someone in their forties now who is buying their
12:02first home. And that data point, I think when you talk about the knowledge-based sessions that you
12:06want to have, I think Logan, Motoshami, and Barry would be able to work great, but don't forget about
12:10the knowledge that Jessica is going to share on stage because the data that NAR has going back to
12:14data on what does the first-time homebuyer profile look like? Who is moving right now? That's all pieces
12:21of the, you know, puzzle that you need as you're playing for 2026. And Jessica has that, but yeah,
12:27I had to share that stat. It, it stopped me in my tracks as I look at my friends who I know are still
12:31trying to buy homes. And it's, it's kind of just like, I want our industry to know this so we can
12:35help fix this. You know, affordable housing is another topic that's in the agenda. It's addressing
12:40stuff like this. How, how did that age get so high? Absolutely. I think there's a big benefit
12:46too in bringing everyone together on one day because, um, at every conference almost there
12:51is an economic session and this is the only conference that I'm aware of in our space where
12:55the whole day is economics. And, and why, why is that? Because it's at the moment that we're in
13:02and it's, there's some very specific things about this market, but also there's just, you know,
13:08things are changing fast and now with data and AI and like the things are moving at a speed where
13:14you need data and you need understanding and you need to know what, how to plan for next more than
13:18ever before. Just to give people some like behind the scenes on the curtain. One thing that, you know,
13:23you and I were chatting about when we were talking about the marketing of this event and how to
13:26position is it's, we're not trying to say we have all the answers. These are forecasts. Forecasts
13:31have changed. I mean, the Logan says that all the time. And as he, as he looks at the, um, indicators
13:36when he looks at the year ahead. And that's what I would say in this event, the value you get from
13:41being in that room is because it's not just, there's so much value in reading the news and
13:45the articles, but you also need to hear this like in-person narrative on how you shift with it.
13:53And what are the flags and these indicators that you need to be looking for? And that's the value
13:56of like, we know we can't say this is exactly where interest rates are going to go. And we know
14:01for a fact, but we can give you what you need to be resilient. Who do you see signing up? Are they
14:07generally like, um, they're at, you know, are they CFOs, CEOs? Are they more like branch managers?
14:13Are they loan officers? Like who is it? This event, I would say has the widest range due to
14:19the nature of it, since it's such an educational focused conference, but still has that application
14:25standpoint. It tends to be people in the operations lane, people in the financial lane, people who are at
14:31the C-suite who want to know what's going along, along with your branch managers and your top performers
14:36who are in this space. It's anyone, which is, it should be in my head, the people who are trying,
14:40who are in this industry trying to grow their business in 2026. And you have a role in the
14:47strategy and decision-making process of whether it's your branch in your financial strategy and
14:52your capital market strategy, but there are sessions from, and that's why the knowledge-based
14:56sessions are so important with Barry and Logan and Jessica, because all of those apply to, and maybe
15:00you don't need as much what's happening in DC. But what's powerful about where the lineup is,
15:06is you don't necessarily want to leave because we make sure we get to the meat of a discussion.
15:10Our sessions are, are faster. So you stay engaged, you stay dynamic, and then maybe the next one's
15:16for you. But there's enough there for those types of roles where you're still getting something out of
15:20the conference through those, those big keynotes, along with the tactical ones that apply to you.
15:25It goes back to your data for decisions, right? Like that's, these are decision makers on a lot
15:30of different levels. And I think that that makes sense for this conference. Super sad. Well, I don't
15:35want to, I don't want to throw too much at you, but I did want to just do a little preview of the
15:40gathering as well, because that's coming up. That's back in April this year. So we need to, you know,
15:46and we've already had huge interest in that as, as we knew we would. So maybe talk a little bit
15:51about the gathering. It is right around the corner. I was just scheduling some of those
15:56on for January last week or yesterday. And I was like, how are we already scheduling for January?
16:01And so that means the gathering is right around the corner. I'll repeat the, that timeframe that
16:06Sarah just said it's April 27th through 30th in Austin, Texas. We're going to be back at the Omni
16:14Barton Creek in Austin. I really enjoy this venue. It lends itself to amazing network,
16:20networking opportunities. And I know not everyone's like me, but what's also fun about
16:24them is they have cycle classes. They have, so you can get your fitness. This industry I have noticed
16:28is an early bird going to run industry. They have a course that you can run. So get kind of,
16:33you know, your networking, your activities. And we had, if you want to, to sidebar my sidebar,
16:38if you want to talk about how to maximize conferences, we know at all of our conferences,
16:44you, you want to know what's going on in technology along with what's going on in the space. I knew a
16:48leader last year who did all of her walk-in talks with her tech partners as a walk-in talk. And so
16:54that's how she got her steps in. And I just love that idea for still getting physical movement in
16:57the beautiful Colorado, um, talking with all of your tech partners. Um, but just kind of doing
17:03multiple things at once, which I love habit hacking. And so we're going to be at the Omni Barton
17:07Creek this year. I just had McKenna Clay. He was our events manager kind of run the numbers. And
17:11this event really is 50% mortgage, 50% real estate on who we have attending. We already have over 300
17:17people registered for this event. This event will sell out. We hit, um, capacity last year. We know
17:23that's going to happen again this year. And it is that ecosystem. We want the content community and
17:27commerce in one place. And so we're all gathering together in Austin, Texas in April. And let's just say,
17:33so the last time we were at Barton Creek, it was a great conference. It was great. It was very
17:37hot. Um, so this April in, in Texas is actually very nice. So wherever you're coming from,
17:43it's going to be nice weather. We will actually be able to get out and do those walk and talks in
17:48April because summer is tough here in, in Texas. Pickleball will be much better this year. I'm
17:56sure we'll have to think last year, everyone just kept playing pickleball after the competition,
18:00because we have turned into quite the pickleball industry. And then we'll also have golf as well,
18:04along with our classic wine tasting and other opportunities, but a lot of, a lot of room to
18:09enjoy the outdoor weather this year since April is much nicer in Texas. Well, Brennan, thank you so
18:13much for being on. I am excited as always for our events. We love meeting people. Um, we always have
18:19a, a good number of our, um, not just the executive team, but also the production team and my, um,
18:25editorial staff. So it's a great opportunity as well to meet our reporters, our editors,
18:29um, our executives, and as well as all the amazing people in the industry that people want to connect
18:35with. Yeah. Sarah, you get stopped a lot. Your voice is known. So come, come meet Sarah Wheeler,
18:41our amazing podcast host, uh, in person as well. I love to meet people. Thank you so much. And we
18:47will talk again soon. Thanks, Sarah.
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