National Association of Real Estate Editors Announces 2026 Journalism Competition Winners
/Miami - (June 3, 2026) - The National Association of Real Estate Editors (NAREE) announced the winners of its 76th Annual Journalism Awards today. This prestigious competition recognizes excellence in reporting, writing, and editing stories about residential and commercial real estate.
The awards were announced at NAREE’s annual conference held at the Kimpton Epic Miami in Miami, Florida. A panel of expert judges from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University selected all winners. Medill’s Karen Springen chaired the panel. Here are NAREE’s 2025 winners with judges’ comments:
Platinum Award - Best Overall Entry by an Individual - Real Estate
James Rodriguez, Business Insider
Editor: Bob Bryan
“Robert Reffkin v. Real Estate - The Compass CEO’s Crusade against Zillow will change how you find your next home.”
Judges’ Comment: In his deeply reported story about Robert Reffkin, the charismatic CEO of Compass, James Rodriguez deftly answers readers’ and editors’ key questions: So what? Who cares? Why now? He opens with the 46-year-old maverick behind the country’s largest real estate brokerage placing one of his legendary, random calls to one of his company’s more than 38,000 agents. Rodriguez can write with so much authority about the Jewish, half-Black alum of Goldman Sachs -- who enthusiastically takes on institutions like the National Association of Realtors and Zillow -- because he interviews so many people. They range from agents, industry leaders and scholars to Reffkin and even his mother, Ruth, a Compass agent who worked in real estate since her son was a young adult. Rodriquez’s piece proves the value of curious, knowledgeable journalists who are willing to do old-fashioned “shoe-leather” reporting.
President’s Award - Best Freelance Collection - Real Estate
Robyn A. Friedman, The Wall Street Journal
Collection Includes: “What Condo Owners Should Know Before a Special Assessment Hits,” “How to Shrink - or Even Eliminate - Capital Gains on Your Home Sale,” “Yes, It Pays to Share a Home With Family. But Plan for Some Challenges”
Judges’ Comment: In her engaging, easy-to-understand pieces about how condo owners can prepare for unexpected “special assessments,” how to reduce capital gains on home sales and how to manage multiple generations living under one roof, Robyn A. Friedman embraces The Wall Street Journal’s news mission to deliver stories through “the lens of business, finance, economics and money.” To illustrate her points, she uses helpful “show, don’t tell” examples of real people, such as a special-education teacher hit with a $102,000 assessment less than a year after retiring to Florida. Yikes. She also gives concrete tips, such as checking the minutes for condo association board of director meetings (to see if an assessment might be in the offing), saving receipts for home improvements (to reduce the tax burden for anyone who exceeds the allowable IRS exclusion in a lucrative home sale) and writing a cohabitation agreement (to prevent disputes among loved ones in a multifamily house). As Friedman skillfully conveys, home is where the heart is – and where the money is.
Ruth Ryon Award - Best Young Journalist - Real Estate
Madaleine Rubin, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Collection Includes: “What does a possible Penguins sale mean for the Hill - after years of stalled development?” “Downtown’s $600 million revitalization plan is being tested as delays and costs pile up,” “Future of Donny’s Place in Polish Hill, once a safe haven for the queer community, remains uncertain”
Judges’ Comment: Madaleine Rubin’s work closely ties commercial real estate moves in Pittsburgh to the city’s identity. She recognized a trend of delays in downtown residential projects previously touted to revitalize and reshape the area, and she explained how the Pittsburgh Penguins’ potential sale would further throw a parcel of land owned by the team into limbo. She also described how the future of a now-shuttered gay bar, a safe space for members of the queer community for decades, remained unsettled after a non-decision by the city’s Historic Review Commission. Rubin’s stories all break down these issues key at points when stakeholders and residents are debating the future of these pockets of Pittsburgh, arming them with the knowledge and context needed to decide the next step.
Category 1: Kenneth R. Harney Award for Best Real Estate Consumer Education Reporting
Jeff Collins, Orange County Register, Southern California News Group
“Hardening Homes Against Wildfires,” “How residents can complete home-hardening”
Judges’ Comment: In his stories, published the month after the Pacific Palisades and Altadena blazes, Jeff Collins delivers exactly what his Orange County Register readers want and need to know: how to fireproof their homes. He opens one piece with a powerful anecdote about an architect whose 3,500-square-foot Palisades residence was the only one still standing on his block. His secret: He designed it with fire in mind. Collins lays out how the home had no overhangs to trap embers and a garden of agave and cacti covered with lava rock instead of mulch. In his “home hardening” story, he briefly and specifically shares details about choosing fire-resistant gutters and roofs, dual-pane windows (with one pane using tempered glass) that won’t shatter during fires, and noncombustible materials like stone and concrete to place around a house’s perimeter. He also encourages homeowners to reduce fuel for fires by removing dead plants, shrubs and trees. Basically, he empowers readers, giving them the tools they need to save lives, including their own.
Category 2: Best Collection of Work by an Individual Covering Residential Real Estate
Gold Winner: James Rodriguez, Business Insider
Collection Includes: “The Boomer Home Dilemma,” “The mortgage buydown backfire,” “Robert Reffkin v. Real Estate”
Judges’ Comment: James Rodriguez places readers in the shoes of his characters, including millennials inheriting their boomer parents’ homes and homeowners who optimistically count on rates dropping soon so they can refinance before their payments bump up to the normal level. He skillfully weaves in statistics and expert commentary, explaining complicated financing options in an understandable way. He explains, for example, how builders “touted borrowing rates well below the prevailing levels, keeping sales moving by enticing buyers with cheaper monthly payments.” Even if they don’t realize it, readers respond to strong verbs like “tout,” strong adjectives like “enticing,” and strong central characters like Compass CEO Robert Reffkin. Rodriguez’s labor-intensive reporting pays off.
Silver Winner: Nicole Friedman, The Wall Street Journal
Collection Includes: “This Real-Estate CEO Is Waging War on Zillow,” “Why a Landmark Settlement on Realtor Fees Hasn’t Cut Costs,” “Homeowners Who Gambled on Lower Rates Are Paying the Price”
Judges’ Comment: In her impressive collection, Nicole Friedman tackles important stories about who benefits -- and who doesn’t -- from changes in the industry. She knows the power of a revealing anecdotal lede: She begins her piece about Compass CEO Robert Reffkin with his mom sharing a story about her then-13-year-old son who pushed her to support his dream to become a DJ until she relented and agreed to buy him equipment and take him to gigs. Friedman’s gem of a quote from his mother: “You don’t say no to Robert.” Friedman’s stories go beyond the surface and dig into why the settlement on realtor fees isn’t cutting costs (the average commission paid to a buyer’s agent even increased slightly) and why homeowners who optimistically and incorrectly bet on lower interest rates are feeling some pain. Rather than just rely on figures and quotes from experts, she skillfully illustrates her key points with real homeowners.
Bronze Winner (tie): Henry Grabar, Slate
Collection Includes: Clearing the Barriers to Housing Abundance: “Cracking the Code,” “Gavin Newsom Finally Gets Serious About the California Housing Crisis,” “The Solution to America’s Housing Crisis Might Be Built in a Factory”
Bronze Winner (tie): Deborah Acosta, The Wall Street Journal
Collection Includes: Florida Residential Real Estate Collection: “The Worst Housing Market in America Is Now Florida’s Cape Coral,” “Why Florida’s Condo Owners Are So Desperate to Sell,” “Miami Suburb’s Once-Vibrant Housing Scene Is Hit by Exodus of Migrants”
Bronze Winner (tie): Ronda Kaysen, The New York Times
Collection Includes: Life in Los Angeles After the Wildfires: “The Last House Standing,” “Whisper Network Emerges in the Desperate Rush for Housing in L.A.,” “L.A. Faces Pressure From Wealthy Residents as Pacific Palisades Rebuilds”
Honorable Mention: Jeff Ostrowski, Bankrate.com
Collection Includes: “Home prices are falling in these formerly hot markets. Why?” “Squeezed first-time buyers turn to six-figure payment assistance packages,” “Builders are dangling super-low mortgage rates - but there’s a catch”
Honorable Mention: Aarthi Swaminathan, MarketWatch.
Collection Includes: The shifting balance of power in the residential real estate market: “Who can actually buy a house today? Meet the ‘elite’ buyers achieving the American dream.” “He was ready to pay $750,000 for his new house. Then the appraisal came in.” “Home sellers face an ‘absolutely brutal’ market that’s tilting in buyers’s favor”
Category 3: Best Collection of Work by an Individual Covering Commercial Real Estate
Gold Winner (tie): Aaron Elstein, Crain's New York Business
Collection Includes: “Secretive property baron Ben Ashkenazy plots a $750 million comeback,” “Midtown office landlord paid millions to CEO-controlled companies,” “Manhattan office buildings can make millions by changing their address”
Judges’ Comment: Aaron Elstein’s collection highlights the scale of commercial real estate and the key role journalists play in shining a light on players who operate largely behind the scenes. While tracing the influence and troubles of a property baron whose portfolio includes The Plaza hotel, he interviewed the billionaire, who hadn’t talked to the media in 24 years. He also reported on previously undisclosed payments in the millions made by Midtown landlord Paramount group, and explained how changing addresses — but not location — is a rebrand worth millions for some properties. These stories place needed attention on individuals making decisions on millions and billions of dollars’ worth of properties, affecting the thousands of tenants affected by them.
Gold Winner (tie): Kirk Pinho, Crain's Detroit Business
Collection Includes: “Apartment magnate had a $2B portfolio. Now, he’s in retreat.” “How Detroit transformed an ‘open-air drug market’ into a chic enclave,” “A Sky-High Opportunity”
Judges’ Comment: Kirk Pinho’s collection demonstrates the range of commercial real estate news to tell stories about how a city is shaped and evolves. He dives deep into the personal life and portfolio of an apartment magnate, breaks down the pros and cons of a skyscraper observation deck in Detroit and explores the controversial transformation of an area once known for open-air drug dealing into a fashionable enclave. His stories are thorough and detailed, and skillfully ties all this information back to the bigger picture of what this means for Detroit as a community.
Silver Winner: Nick Wooten, The Dallas Morning News
Collection Includes: “AT&T intensifies focus on Plano, Frisco in new office search,” “‘A world of trouble.’ Developer Harwood sells handful of towers, faces foreclosures,” “‘Golden ticket’ or sledgehammer? D-FW suburbs fight Texas’ new anti-NIMBY building law”
Judges’ Comment: This strong collection showcases how commercial real estate news can be framed and explained in ways that engage the entire community, not just the movers and shakers in multimillion-dollar deals. Nick Wooten’s reporting covered AT&T’s search for space outside of downtown Dallas, the troubles of big-time developer Harwood and the ramifications of a new state law that allows residential developments to be built without rezoning. In each of these stories, Wooten’s clear, crisp writing identifies the stakeholders and lays out the stakes, tracing the potential effects these moves would have on the Dallas-Fort Worth area immediately and years into the future.
Bronze Winner (tie): Chloe Gallivan, Bisnow
Collection Includes: “Behind Vanderbilt University’s ‘Insatiable’ National Expansion Plan,” “Cuts to Nation’s Weather Service Put More Pressure On Property Managers,” “Property Owners Caught In the Middle Of Florida’s New Open-Carry Law”
Bronze Winner (tie): Madaleine Rubin, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Collection Includes: “What does a possible Penguins sale mean for the Hill - after years of stalled development?,” “Downtown’s $600 million revitalization plan is being tested as delays and costs pile up,” “Future of Donny’s Place in Polish Hill, once a safe haven for the queer community, remains uncertain”
Honorable Mention: Michelle Jarboe, News 5 Cleveland (WEWS)
Collection Includes: “Report says Browns short 10,000 game-day parking spaces in Brook Park; suggests nearby businesses as solution,” “Other cities are looking to Cleveland as a Leader on office conversions. Here’s why.” “Cleveland candy maker’s sweet social media stunt melts bureaucratic barriers”
Category 4: Best Regular or Syndicated Real Estate Column
Gold Winner: Kirk Pinho, Crain's Detroit Business
“How 3 legends once made a deal nearly as big as Detroit”
Judges’ Comment: Kirk Pinho delivers an ambitious and deeply reported story that turns a complex real estate deal into a compelling narrative about power, land, and legacy. He makes massive scale understandable by tracing the evolution of Irvine Co. from a 19th century ranch to one of the most valuable real estate portfolios in the country. What sets the piece apart is its scope and storytelling. By linking Detroit business figures to California development, Pinho creates a surprising and nationally relevant narrative. Rich historical detail and strong character moments bring depth to what could have been a dry financial story. This entry wins for its range, clarity, and ability to turn history and finance into a story readers want to follow.
Silver Winner: Robyn A. Friedman, Freelance Writer, The Wall Street Journal
“What Condo Owners Should Know Before a Special Assessment Hit”
Judges’ Comment: Robyn A. Friedman turns a complex and often overlooked issue, condo special assessments, into clear and urgent journalism with real human stakes. By centering the story on a retiree hit with a six figure bill, she makes the consequences immediate and tangible, not abstract. The reporting is both explanatory and useful. Friedman breaks down how these assessments happen, why they are increasing, and what readers can do, all while grounding the story in broader policy changes following the Champlain Towers South collapse. Expert voices add authority without slowing the narrative. This entry stands out for its clarity, relevance, and impact, taking a complicated issue and making it understandable, personal, and actionable.
Bronze Winner: Matthew Power, Green Builder Magazine
“Music to their Ears”
Category 5: Best Economic Analysis - Real Estate
Gold Winner: Robyn A. Friedman, Freelance Writer, Kiplinger Personal Finance
“Should You Make the Switch to Solar Energy?”
Judges’ Comment: Robyn A. Friedman takes a complex financial and environmental decision and makes it clear, practical, and easy to understand. By walking readers through the real costs, savings, and tradeoffs of switching to solar, she turns a technical topic into useful, everyday guidance. What makes the piece stand out is its strong service journalism. Friedman combines real examples, clear calculations, and step by step explanations to show readers how to evaluate whether solar makes sense for them, from tax credits to payback periods. This entry stands out for its clarity, usefulness, and relevance, giving readers the tools they need to make an informed decision about a major financial investment.
Silver Winner: Deborah Acosta, The Wall Street Journal
“Why Florida's Condo Owners Are So Desperate to Sell”
Judges’ Comment: Deborah Acosta takes a complex housing issue and makes it immediate and deeply human. By starting with the story of a retired couple priced out of their own condo, she shows how rising costs are reshaping lives, not just markets. What makes the piece stand out is its clear explanation of a multifaceted crisis. Acosta connects insurance spikes, special assessments, new safety regulations, and tightening lending standards to show why costs are surging and why so many owners are trying to sell at once. This entry stands out for its clarity, depth, and impact, turning a regional real estate story into a broader look at affordability, risk, and the unintended consequences of policy changes.
Bronze Winner: John Gittelsohn, Bloomberg Businessweek
“Americans Are Getting Priced Out of Homeownership at Record Rates”
Honorable Mention: Jillian D’Onfro, The San Francisco Standard
“San Francisco is being swamped by an ‘unprecedented’ property tax mess”
Honorable Mention: James Rodriguez, Business Insider
“RIP Zoomtowns”
Honorable Mention: Jason Hidalgo, Reno Gazette-Journal
“How Vegas became a tourist punching bag, and what the numbers say for Nevada’s outlook”
Category 6: Best Interior Design Story
Gold Winner: Rachel Wharton, The New York Times - Wirecutter
“Why Your Kitchen Looks Like That”
Judges’ Comment: In this rich-with-history interactive piece, Rachel Wharton engagingly shows the evolution of home kitchens over the past century. As she notes, some appliances, like toasters and mixers, even, basically, stay the same. With vintage photos and architectural drawings that illustrate concepts like the “work triangle” and Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1934 “open kitchen.” Wharton produces the type of piece that readers forward to friends. It includes gems like a 1956 video clip of a beautiful housewife serenading her dream kitchen. Wharton’s chronological storytelling makes it easy for older readers to take a trip down memory lane, even showing a clip of Julia Childs with her “co-star” (her kitchen). Younger readers may chuckle (or groan) at details like a 1915 home-economics bulletin that asks, “Is not housework as worthwhile studying as the shoveling of coal?” Readers get to frequently interact with the piece, choosing whether, for example, they prefer one or two kitchen islands. This piece earns a flour-covered thumbs up.
Silver Winner: Robyn A. Friedman, Freelance Writer, The Boston Globe
“Are Formal Dining Rooms a Thing of the Past? Depends Who You Ask”
Judges’ Comment: Filled with historical tidbits, this piece by Robyn A. Friedman gives the dining room its due. She starts her story with the legendary first Thanksgiving in 1621 and notes that meals of that time took place in multipurpose rooms, with handmade wooden tables and hearths used for cooking and staying warm. Then, as New Englanders became more prosperous, they built formal dining rooms. Top-notch reporter that she is, Friedman finds a designer who spends four or five hours at a stretch hanging out with friends in this favorite spot, playing cards and games (not just eating). She also gets the numbers, citing a survey that shows 44% of consumers believe a formal dining room is important. Though readers may be unfamiliar with a “kicker,” Friedman knows how to craft one. She ends with a strong quote about the evolution of dining rooms, now more about “connection” than “presentation.”
Bronze Winner: Emily Landes, The San Francisco Standard
“Extreme Staging: Selling a Home in the Bay Area Now Means Flipping It Yourself”
Honorable Mention: Casey Farmer, Mansion Global
“They Flipped a ‘Flophouse’ and Restored the Southern Charm to This Savannah Victorian”
Category 7: Best Architecture Story
Gold Winner: Anna Kodé, The New York Times
“The Politics of Brutalism”
Judges’ Comment: In her timely, history-rich piece, Anna Kodé looks at Brutalism – a polarizing style at odds with the current administration’s preference for public buildings with “classical architectural heritage.” Another “why now”: “The Brutalist,” the Oscar-nominated film. Drawing on interviews with architectural historians and others, Kodé examines what the obsession with this utilitarian style says about society at this moment. As she notes, Tucker Carlson said in 2021 that it’s to “oppress.” But it’s also an ode to the marvels of concrete and ingenuity. Kodak captures the conflict and tension surrounding buildings that are turning 50 and showing their age. Should they stay or should they go? Undoubtedly, Kodé will keep readers posted on what’s next for a style that’s at odds with the taste of the current U.S. president.
Silver Winner: Ciara Long, Bisnow.
“Almost Every Window Ends Up in a Landfill. One Woman Is Leading the Charge to Recycle Them”
Judges’ Comment: Ciara Long skillfully tackles an important, pressing issue: the real-estate industry’s huge carbon footprint, responsible for 40% of the world’s emissions, by looking specifically at windows. She gathers vital statistics, noting the annual creation of 10 million tons of them – “the weight of the Titanic 19 times over.” Why not recycle more of the glass? She lays out the sizable challenges. It’s tricky to separate the architectural glass from metal frames and from thin layers of metal that coat it, so most traditional recycling companies reject it. Demand for architectural glass recycling isn’t greater because of lack of awareness. Long comes to the rescue here, clearly explaining why it’s cheaper to recycle glass than to make it from scratch. She tucks in great “who knew” details, such as how furnaces that make new glass must be kept between 2,732 and 2,912 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 years (“hotter than molten lava”) whereas furnaces that recycle glass can run 30% cooler. It’s a hot read from a cool reporter.
Bronze Winner: Michele Lerner, Freelance Writer, Mansion Global
“‘Boulder’ Home Designs: Houses Are Taking the Rocky Topography Inside”
Honorable Mention: Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post
“The history of Potter Highlands told through a blond, brick building: Celeste Ballerino delivers Italiante duplex on the site of a former auto garage”
Category 8: Best Residential Real Estate Story – Daily or Weekly Newspaper
Gold Winner: Stephana Ocneanu, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Who ensures Western Pa. fire hydrants are working - or even available? The answer can be complicated”
Judges’ Comment: Many of us take fire hydrants for granted. They might be a mandatory stop if walking a dog, a moderate annoyance when trying to find street parking. This story recenters the importance of these life-saving devices and calls attention to communities in Western Pennsylvania where working hydrants aren’t always a given. Stephana Ocneanu approaches the issue as one of jurisdiction — or, more accurately, lack thereof. Yet while such a story might easily get bogged down by explanations of legalities and boundaries and gaps in coverage, Ocneanu never lets the story stray far from the most important matter: the experiences and fears of the people whose lives and property are at risk.
Silver Winner: Alexis Weisend, The Seattle Times
“These are the Seattle area’s Gen Z homeowners. How did they do it?”
Judges’ Comment: This story covers the newest generation of Seattle-area homeowners from all angles. Structured around the unique journeys of the few who have achieved this tenet of the American dream by their mid-20s, the piece breaks down what exactly it took and how homeownership looks for Gen Z. Alexis Weisend’s balanced approach resists lionizing those with mortgages or chastising those who continue to rent. This is no mere how-to for homeownership — it’s a multifaceted take that questions the affordability and achievability of the American dream for those under 30.
Bronze Winner: Jeff Collins, Orange County Register, Southern California News Group
“Wildfire survivors scramble to find housing”
Honorable Mention: Matt Yan, The New York Times
“Can’t Afford a House? Try Baltic Avenue.”
Honorable mention: Kristi Waterworth, Freelance Writer, Springfield Business Journal
“Animal shelters hit hard by knock-on effects of affordable housing crisis”
Category 9: Best Residential Mortgage or Financial Real Estate Story - Daily or Weekly Newspaper
Gold Winner: Akiko Matsuda, The Wall Street Journal
“Her Senior Facility Filed for Bankruptcy, Then Wiped Her Out”
Judges’ Comment: Akiko Matsuda shines a bright light on a devastating problem: older people being displaced from continuing-care retirement communities that go bankrupt and their families losing over $190 million in the process. She draws in her reader with heartbreaking examples. In her anecdotal lede, she shows how an 89-year-old widow paid a $945,000 entrance fee and $5,700 in monthly fees. The place went bankrupt three times, and then the investor who bought it scaled back care so the widow needed to move – and her family expects to get less than a third of the $710,000 refund promised to her. Matsuda also knows how to zoom out and give the big picture, using court filings and a healthcare restructuring advisory firm to discover that among nearly 2,000 of these types of facilities nationwide, at least 16 of them filed for chapter 11 since the start of the pandemic. Numbers matter a great deal, and Matsuda gets them. In 2023, about 623,000 people lived in continuing-care retirement community facilities. Buyer beware.
Silver Winner: Michaelle Bond, The Philadelphia Inquirer
“How a First-Time Homebuyer Paid Less than $50 to Close on Her South Philly Rowhouse”
Judges’ Comment: It sounds too good to be true: paying $48.81 to close on a century-old South Philly rowhouse. Michelle Bond zooms in on this dramatic example of Teresa Nutter to open her story about how first-time home buyers can get help from government agencies, mortgage lenders and nonprofits. It’s refreshing to see an inspiring piece that spells out exactly how this particular lower-income administrator got help and how others can, too. Among other things, Nutter got a loan through the Federal Housing Administration and a $10,000 grant from Philly First Home (the city’s assistance program for newbie purchasers). Bond can write with authority because she tracks down and interviews the cast of characters who help make Philly ownership dreams come true.
Category 10: Best Commercial Real Estate Story - Daily or Weekly Newspaper
Gold Winner: Madaleine Rubin, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Turning anger to hope: The development of the lower Hill has hit reset, and that could be a good sign”
Judges’ Comment: Madaleine Rubin takes a stalled development story and turns it into a powerful narrative about history, inequality, and the long consequences of broken promises. By contrasting two neighborhoods that started from nearly identical agreements but ended up on very different paths, she gives the story a clear and compelling structure. What makes the piece stand out is its depth of reporting and connection to lived experience. Rubin grounds policy and development decisions in the voices of residents who have waited decades for change, showing how past displacement and present day inaction are closely linked. This entry stands out for its clarity, context, and emotional weight, turning a local development story into a broader look at accountability, community, and what progress really means.
Silver Winner: Joe Gose, New York Times
“Office Market Poised to Rebound as Work From Home Policies End”
Judges’ Comment: Joe Gose takes a complicated and uncertain moment in the office real estate market and makes it clear, nuanced, and deeply reported. He shows that the story is not a simple recovery, but a split market where high end buildings rebound while lower tier properties continue to struggle. What makes the piece stand out is its command of data and trendlines. Gose uses concrete numbers on leasing, pricing, and vacancies to show where the market is improving and where risks remain, giving readers a grounded understanding of what "recovery" really means. This entry stands out for its clarity, balance, and authority, turning a complex economic shift into a story that is both accessible and essential to understand.
Bronze Winner: Laura Waxmann, San Francisco Chronicle
“Downtown S.F. is struggling while this adjacent neighborhood is thriving. Here’s why”
Honorable Mention: Ellen Rosen, The New York Times
“Can a University From Tennessee Help Accelerate Growth in West Palm Beach?”
Category 11: Best Residential Real Estate, Residential Mortgage or Financial Real Estate Magazine Story - General Circulation
Gold Winner: Aaron Elstein, Crain’s New York Business
“Apartments Sit Empty As Tenant Protection Laws Upend the Economics of Being a Landlord”
Judges’ Comment: Often people view landlords as the bad guys, but like their tenants, they can face financial hardships. Sometimes they’re so cash strapped that apartments wind up sitting empty in a city that badly needs more affordable housing. Aaron Elstein clearly explains how New York’s crackdown on tenant harassment is leaving some properties in “legal and financial limbo.” As he notes, rents for regulated units fail to keep up with inflation. As a result, owners can’t afford to make much-needed improvements because they’re unable to rent the apartments for market prices. Elstein avoids taking sides but lets his reporting show how sticking it to landlords can put buildings at risk. He uses numbers well: A brokerage firm partner says a 1,000-unit portfolio in the Bronx that likely would have gone for $150 million in 2018 is available for just $65 million. Will many people still want to be affordable-housing owners, given the role today seems to come with more perils than payoffs?
Silver Winner: Kristi Waterworth, Freelance Writer, U.S. News & World Report
“The Effects of Tree Inequity on a Home”
Judges’ Comment: Kristi Waterworth shines a light on “tree inequity” -- a problem readers should know about but probably don’t. Trees enhance mental and physical health and boost real estate prices but are more likely to be in wealthier suburbs than in urban areas. That’s a shame for many reasons. After all, the concrete, asphalt and brick surfaces in cities could use nature’s version of a shade umbrella. Through interviews with urban designers and others, Waterworth raises important questions about the role of nature and green spaces in providing the peace and calm that people say they want in their lives.
Bronze Winner: Shaina Mishkin, Barron’s
“A Shrinking Housing Market Means Upheaval for Buyers”
Honorable Mention: J. K. Dineen, San Francisco Chronicle
“San Francisco’s ‘Boom Loop’ May Be Underway - But Not in One Critical Industry”
Category 12: Best Residential Real Estate Trade or B-to-B Magazine Story
Gold Winner: Jake Indursky, The Real Deal
“Opendoor’s Meme Home”
Judges’ Comment: It’s difficult to report and write a revealing story when the chief character in it won’t talk. But Jake Indursky pulls it off. Immediately, he helps the reader picture Opendoor’s new CEO, Kaz Netajian, in a black T-shirt emblazoned with the word “Faster.” Indursky clearly explains Opendoor’s premise of no-hassle home buying and its readjustments. (It scrapped a “buy it now” button.) He also puts the company and the Netajian in context, noting that the leader’s wife, Candice Malcolm, founded a conservative news site that posted an interview with the far-right founder of the Proud Boys. When Netajian worked at Spotify, he “shuttered” some initiatives to help Black and Indigenous clients and faced heat from employees over political donations. People are understandably reluctant to speak about the controversial leader, even after Indursky reaches out on a popular Discord server for Opendoor investors. Netajian dreams of Opendoor being the Amazon of home sales, but as the reporting in this piece shows, that may be easier said than done.
Silver Winner: Jesse Hardin, The Real Deal
“As Mehrdad Moayedi Developed North Texas, He Defined DFW Real Estate Swagger”
Judges’ Comment: Jesse Hardin lands an in-person interview with Mehrdad Moayedi, the Tehran-born big name in North Texas real estate who may well be the biggest single-family lot developer in the area. Hardin gets great details about this “affable” man -- a Donald Trump supporter who bought a plane from the president in 2024 and keeps a MAGA hat on a lion’s head sculpture in his office. Despite some complicated legal disputes, Moayedi, at least so far, is prevailing in court and continuing to play an outsize role in suburban sprawl. The developer shrugs off complaints, saying he is a land guy, not an architect. Hardin raises thought-provoking questions about what matters most – aesthetics or, as Moayedi notes in the kicker, good schools, parks and a roof over the head.
Bronze Winner: Kathryn Brenzel, The Real Deal
“Holy HUD!”
Honorable Mention: Michele Lerner, Freelance Writer, Pro Builder
“Homeowners Insurance: The Other Affordability Crisis”
Honorable Mention: Matthew Kaufman, Multi-Housing News
“The 24/7 Leasing Agent”
Category 13: Best Commercial Real Estate Trade or B-to-B Magazine Story
Gold Winner: Rich Bockmann, The Real Deal
“1-800-CALL-LEO”
Judges’ Comment: Lawyer Leo Jacobs takes a chauffeur-driven Bentley Flying Spur to work. It’s the kind of crazy detail that deserves to be in the first sentence of a profile, and that’s where Rich Bockmann wisely puts it. The 37-year-old’s specialty is working with borrowers who have signed personal guarantees and finding technical issues to exploit. He doesn’t work with lenders, which makes it easier for him to be tough on them. Bockmann puts the reader in the room, relaying how the 6-foot-3 Queens College alum compares himself to Winston Churchill. He shows how Jacobs lives large, recently purchasing a Tudor-style home in a tony part of Queens where Donald Trump lived as a child. His memorable kicker? “If you’re the right kind of client at the worst kind of moment, you call Leo.”
Silver Winner: Evelyn Lee, PERE
“Starwood, the Next Generation”
Judges’ Comment: In this succession story, Evelyn Lee talks with billionaire real-estate manager Barry Sternlicht, who co-founded Starwood Capital Group more than three decades ago, and his chosen successor, former Blackstone executive Jonathan Pollack. The 64-year-old Sternlicht tells Lee he hopes to move toward more of a coaching role with the 48-year-old Pollack. She gets both men to speak frankly about how to grow the business and retain talent – and rightly concludes with giving Pollack the last word. Basically, he wants Starwood to be the best place to work in the industry. Lee knows her readers want fresh insights about these leaders, not rehashed material, and her sit-down chats help her deliver.
Bronze Winner: Nellie Day, Multifamily & Affordable Housing Business
“Thinking Outside the Box to Solve Package Delivery Issues”
Honorable Mention: Keith Larsen, The Real Deal
“Moshe Silber’s Money Trial”
Category 14: Best Online Residential, Mortgage or Financial Real Estate Story
Gold Winner: Libertina Brandt, The Wall Street Journal
“Apple Pies and Water Rights: Inside a Desert Community’s Fight to Finish 4,000 Homes”
Judges’ Comment: Libertina Brandt takes a seemingly idyllic master planned community and reveals the deeper tension shaping its future. By pairing the charm of Verrado, from welcome apple pies to tightly knit neighborhoods, with the hard reality of water scarcity, she creates a story that is both inviting and consequential. What makes the piece stand out is its balance of lifestyle and policy. Brandt grounds the story in vivid details about daily life while clearly explaining the complex water rules and development limits that are slowing growth. The contrast between rapid expansion and finite resources gives the story urgency and broader relevance. This entry stands out for its clarity, originality, and sense of place, turning a local real estate story into a larger look at growth, sustainability, and the limits shaping the future of American communities.
Silver Winner: Jeff Collins, Orange County Register
“As LA wildfires raged, these residents watched their homes burn on doorbell video”
Judges’ Comment: Jeff Collins takes a devastating wildfire story and finds a striking, modern lens through which to tell it. By focusing on residents watching their homes burn in real time through doorbell cameras, he captures a uniquely current experience of loss that feels immediate and unforgettable. What makes the piece stand out is its powerful use of firsthand accounts. Collins lets victims tell the story through vivid, emotional detail, showing how technology can both deepen trauma and provide a sense of closure. The reporting balances personal grief with broader context about the rise of video doorbells and how they are reshaping how people experience disasters. This entry stands out for its originality, emotional impact, and storytelling, turning a breaking news event into a deeply human story about technology, loss, and what it means to witness tragedy in real time.
Bronze Winner: James Rodriguez, Business Insider
“The golden age of house hunting is over”
Honorable Mention: Ryan Wangman and Maddy McCarty, Bisnow
“2026 World Cup Stakes Are Bigger Than A Trophy - U.S. Affordable Housing Is At Risk, Too”
Honorable Mention: Stefanos Chen, Dionne Searcey, and Urvashi Uberoy, The New York Times
“A Tower on Billionaires’ Row Is Full of Cracks. Who’s to Blame?”
Category 15: Best Online Commercial Real Estate Story
Gold Winner (tie): Marissa Luck, Matt Zdun, and Yasmeen Khalifa, Houston Chronicle
“Houston could see enough store vacancies to fill Toyota Center if Greg Abbott doesn’t veto THC ban”
Judges’ Comment: This story takes a fast-moving policy change and shows exactly who it will affect and how. By focusing on hemp shop owners, employees, and landlords, it turns a potential THC ban into a clear and immediate economic story with real stakes. What makes the piece stand out is its strong use of data and scale. The reporting quantifies the impact, from thousands of jobs to hundreds of storefronts and hundreds of thousands of square feet of retail space that could suddenly go vacant, helping readers understand both the human and market consequences.
This entry stands out for its clarity, urgency, and depth, turning policy into a vivid story about livelihoods, risk, and the ripple effects across an entire industry.
Gold Winner (tie): Madaleine Rubin, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“What does a possible Penguins sale mean for the Hill - after years of stalled development?”
Judges’ Comment: Madaleine Rubin takes a complicated real estate and ownership story and makes it urgent and easy to follow. By tying the possible sale of the Penguins directly to the future of the Lower Hill, she shows how business decisions at the top can shape the fate of an entire community. What makes the piece stand out is its accountability reporting. Rubin uses contracts, deadlines, and data to show the gap between what was promised and what was delivered, while grounding the story in the voices of residents who have been waiting for years. This entry stands out for its clarity, focus, and public impact, turning a complex deal into a clear story about responsibility, power, and what communities are owed.
Silver Winner: Craig Karmin and Allison Pohle, The Wall Street Journal
“The Waldorf’s Makeover Went a Billion Over Budget - and China Is Footing the Bill”
Judges’ Comment: This story works because it takes a highly technical sustainability issue and turns it into a clear, compelling narrative about innovation, scale, and industry change. By centering the story on one person and one idea, recycling architectural glass, it creates a strong entry point and then expands outward to show the massive environmental stakes and systemic challenges behind it. The reporting is especially effective in combining vivid specifics, like tons of glass waste and the complexity of the recycling process, with broader context about emissions, industry practices, and adoption barriers. It also balances optimism with realism, highlighting both the breakthrough and the logistical and economic hurdles that still exist. The result is content that feels both informative and forward looking, helping readers understand not just a new idea, but how difficult it is to change an entire system and why that change matters.
Category 16: Best Real Estate E-Newsletter Editor
Gold Winner: Kerry Barger, The Wall Street Journal
“WSJ Homes E-Newsletter”
Judges’ Comment: These newsletters earned gold because the content is tightly curated, purposeful, and consistently focused on what matters most right now. Each item is chosen with clear editorial intent, prioritizing stories that signal change, risk, or opportunity rather than simply summarizing everything available. They provide just enough context to turn headlines into insight, helping readers quickly understand why a development matters without slowing them down. At the same time, the content maintains a clear throughline, creating a sense of cohesion across multiple topics so the newsletter feels like a complete snapshot of a beat, not a random list. Most importantly, the information is practical and decision oriented, giving readers a clear sense of what changed, why it matters, and what to watch next, which is what ultimately makes a newsletter useful, engaging, and worth returning to.
Silver Winner: Jon Banister and Emily Wishingrad, Bisnow
“Bisnow's D.C. Rundown”
Judges’ Comment: This newsletter works because it delivers exactly what its audience needs: fast, high value information about a specific market. It pulls together multiple timely stories, deals, and policy updates into one place, allowing readers to quickly understand what is happening across the D.C. commercial real estate landscape. What makes it especially effective is its structure. The mix of short summaries, deal sheets, and trend driven headlines creates a rhythm that keeps readers moving. Each item is concise but meaningful, giving just enough detail to inform while encouraging deeper clicks for readers who want more.
Bronze Winner: Oshrat Carmiel, Highest & Best
“Tower to the People”
Category 17: Best Audio Real Estate Report – Online or Broadcast – Podcast or Radio
Gold Winner: Lee Hawkins, Freelance Journalist, Kelly Silvera, Executive Producer, Meredith Garettson-Morbey, Senior Producer, Marcel Malekebu, Producer, and Gary O'Keefe, Sound Engineer, American Public Media’s Marketplace
“Unlocking the Gates: How the North Led Housing Discrimination in America”
Judges’ Comment: “Unlocking the Gates” won gold because the content is deeply reported, tightly structured, and built around a clear investigative throughline that unfolds across episodes. Instead of treating racial covenants as abstract history, the series grounds the topic in a specific place and set of families, showing how discriminatory housing practices were intentionally created, enforced, and carried forward over generations. The storytelling consistently connects past to present, using data, archival records, and personal narratives to show how policies that were outlawed decades ago still shape wealth, neighborhoods, and opportunity today. It also builds momentum across installments, moving from origin and expansion to consequences and accountability, so each piece adds new understanding rather than repeating information. What makes the content especially strong is that it does not just explain what happened, it explains how and why it still matters, turning history into a living, consequential story. The result is journalism that is both explanatory and emotional, giving audiences a clear sense of systemic impact while keeping them engaged through narrative, character, and stakes.
Silver Winner: Tracey Velt, HousingWire
“The Agent Mistake Costing You Millions, with Tom Ferry & Josh Altman”
Judges’ Comment: This podcast works because the content is highly focused, practical, and built around clear takeaways that listeners can immediately apply. It centers on a strong, timely premise, the gap in accessible, high quality training, and uses that as a lens to explore what actually separates top performers from the rest, grounding the discussion in concrete insights.
Bronze Winner: Adhiti Bandlamudi, KQED News
“These Bay Area Renters Are ‘Speed Dating’ to Find a Roommate”
Category 18: Best Video Real Estate Report Online or Broadcast – Streaming or
Television
Gold Winner: Michelle Jarboe, News 5 Cleveland (WEWS)
“It's one of Cleveland's hidden strengths. Other cities would love to emulate it.”
Judges’ Comment: This story earned gold because the content combines a clear local narrative with broader national relevance, turning Cleveland into a case study for a much bigger shift in how cities are adapting after the pandemic. It grounds the reporting in a specific project, the Rose Building redevelopment, while layering in data, history, and multiple perspectives to show how and why office conversions have become central to downtown survival. The piece also excels at connecting past and present, showing how Cleveland’s long history of repurposing underused buildings positioned it ahead of other cities now facing the same challenges. At the same time, it balances optimism with realism, explaining both the opportunity and the limits of conversions, which gives the story credibility and depth. The result is content that feels both informative and narrative driven, helping readers understand not just what is happening in one city, but why it matters for the future of urban development more broadly.
Silver Winner: Valerie Kellogg, Homes.com News
“CoStar Podcast: Every Home Has a Story”
Judges’ Comment: These Homes.com podcast episodes earned silver because the content consistently turns unique homes into compelling entry points for larger ideas about design, culture, and how people live today. Each story is anchored in a distinctive property, whether it is a never built Frank Lloyd Wright design finally realized, a reimagined lighthouse, or unconventional paths to homeownership, and then expands into something broader about creativity, access, or reinvention. The episodes balance storytelling with insight, using vivid, specific details to draw listeners in while also highlighting trends like changing buyer behavior, generational challenges, or the evolving role of architecture and branding. They also maintain a strong narrative focus, with clear characters and stakes, which makes each episode feel like a complete story rather than just a feature. Most importantly, the content is engaging because it blends inspiration with relevance, showing not just interesting homes, but what those homes reveal about ambition, identity, and the shifting housing landscape.
Category 19: Best Breaking News Real Estate News Story
Gold Winner: Jeff Collins, Los Angeles Daily News, Southern California News Group
“Southern California fire danger zones increase 76% in new maps,” “High fire zones expand in Altadena, through some destroyed areas left out”
Judges’ Comment: January’s devastating fires in Los Angeles placed an added layer of attention on the region’s regulations. When California released its fire maps, the first in 14 years, identifying where the probability of wildfire would be greatest during the next few decades, Jeff Collins quickly analyzed the changes and compared the zones with the areas ravaged by fires just a couple of months earlier. He found the high fire zone grew 1.1 million acres, meaning property owners in those zones would have to comply with stricter fire building codes. He also found, however, some areas just destroyed by the January fires were left out of those high-risk zones. His reporting resulted in a front-page package that not only outlined the fire mapping process but also explained its ramifications and scrutinized those changes.
Silver Winner: Jason Hidalgo, Reno Gazette-Journal
“Reno Suites: Confusion at ex-Harrah’s Reno tower as ‘guests’ get 7-day notice”
Judges’ Comment: When residents of a building in Reno were notified they had only a week to find new housing before the property closed for renovations, Jason Hidalgo’s reporting uncovered a loophole exploited to classify the people living there as hotel guests with fewer rights than tenants. Hidalgo’s reporting did not stop there. He talked to affected residents as well as the owners of the property, including a representative who used the word “tenants” to describe the residents. The story contextualized the issue, explaining how this practice had been banned in nearby California and how lack of affordable housing in Reno would leave the evicted people with few options. This reporting led to residents receiving an extension and assistance to move.
Bronze Winner: Paul Bubny, Connect CRE
“LA County Wildfires: A Guide to Relief Resources”
Category 20: Best Investigative Report or Investigative Series - Real Estate
Gold Winner: Hannah Beckler, Robert Leslie, Dakin Campbell, Erica Berenstein, Reem
Makhoul, and Tyler Merkel, Business Insider
Collection includes: The True Cost of Data Centers: “See where data centers are across the US on our interactive map,” “‘The AI boom’ pits neighbor against neighbor,” “Inside the secretive world of America’s AI data centers”
Judges’ Comment: Business Insider’s investigation on U.S. data centers is truly national in scope, collecting the best information available on data centers across the country. Artificial intelligence and the data centers that allow for AI’s massive growth are often discussed in a way that gives them an almost spectral quality, but this investigation grounds them geographically and visually with an interactive map, data tables, a half-hour-long video and photos, which all help put a face on an obscure force. This series is eye-opening about the effects of data centers on natural resources, local economies and the people who live next to them.
Silver Winner (tie): Rukmini Callimachi, Blacki Migliozzi, and K.K. Rebecca Lai, The New York Times
Collection includes: “How Insurers Are Forcing Families to Live in Toxic Homes,” “‘Unsafe to Inhabit’: The Toxic Homes of L.A.” “How Did This Family End Up Back in a Toxic House?”
Judges’ Comment: Coverage of the Los Angeles fires in January 2025 was visual and visceral, but this New York Times investigation focuses on the unseen effects on nearby houses that were exposed to toxic chemicals released into the air by the fires. Times reporter Blacki Migliozzi logged more than 100 hours shadowing industrial hygienists working inside these toxic homes, documenting the damage. The series showed how insurance companies don’t test for these chemicals or use outdated research to deem homes “safe.” Though the investigation revolves around the aftermath of the L.A. fires, its importance goes beyond as wildfires become more prevalent. Each story also ends with a methodology section laying out how data was collected and analyzed, a transparent and thorough touch that adds to the credibility of the stories.
Silver Winner (tie): Josh Salman and Derek Gilliam, Suncoast Searchlight
“Power and Profit: Developers Gained Government Status, Then Got Bonds to Build Big”
Judges’ Comment: This investigation connected the dots between real estate developers and government bonds tied to independent special districts, which allow reins-free spending on the developers’ side while Florida homeowners foot the bill. Suncoast Searchlight illuminates this murky process obscured by complex legislation and a lack of oversight. The team had to follow the money and piece together the causes and effects of this system, which in many cases played out over years. This set of three stories lays out their findings, with clear explanations and graphics that help illustrate their findings.
Bronze Winner: Michaelle Bond and Joe Yeradi, The Philadelphia Inquirer
“The danger next door”
Bronze Winner: Matt Wasielewski, Bisnow
Collection includes: “EXCLUSIVE: Lawsuit Alleges Appraisal Institute Has Given States Fraudulent Test Results For Years,” “Appraisal Institute Vice President Forced Out As Sexual Harassment Claims Swirl,” “Appraisal Institute’s Lead Professional Designation Reviewer Hasn’t Held a License in 7 Years”
Honorable Mention: Jon Banister, Bianca Barragán, Taylor Driscoll, Ryan Wangman, Matt Wasielewski, and Emily Wishingrad, Bisnow
Collection includes: “Pullback From DEI Hasn't Derailed Commercial Real Estate's Slow March Toward Greater Representation,” “The Quiet Retreat: How White House Pressure Is Rewriting CRE’s DEI Playbook,” “CRE’s Diversity Leaders Are Still Doing the Work. They’re Just Not Calling It ‘DEI’”
Honorable Mention: Debbie Nathan, Freelance Writer and Alyssa Katz, Executive Editor, THE CITY
“The Terrible Truth About Sherita, Brooklyn’s Beloved Billboard Dinosaur”
Category 21: Best Multi-Platform Package or Series – Real Estate
Gold Winner: (tie) Jake Blumgart, Erin Reynolds, Gabe Coffey, and Michaelle Bond, The Philadelphia Inquirer
Collection includes: “Why one of Philly’s most iconic public art pieces is getting demolished,” “CHOP wants to build a huge parking garage in one of Philly’s most environmentally distressed neighborhoods,” “What’s Next for the Wanamaker Building?”
Judges’ Comment: This collection of real estate video stories shows a commitment to not only reaching audiences where they are (social media) but also expanding reach beyond the traditional readers of real estate news. The team producing these videos resists the urge to go for the quick and quirky stories that might go viral for a few days. Instead, they break down Philadelphia’s complex real estate issues, from the huge Wanamaker Building vacancy, to a children’s hospital’s plans to build a parking garage next to a playground, to the demolition of an iconic piece of public art. Each of these videos clearly lay out the array of different interests at play.
Gold Winner: (tie) Anna Kodé, The New York Times
“The Quintessential Urban Design of ‘Sesame Street’”
Judges’ Comment: The online presentation of this story beautifully melds the traditional web layout (paragraphs of text punctuated by horizontal photos) with the new aesthetics of social media (vertical photos with text that scrolls over the images). The accompanying video, shot vertically for Instagram and TikTok, is a thoughtfully and tightly scripted two-and-a-half-minute story that uses the “Sesame Street” set and archival clips to great advantage. The entire package comes together thoughtfully and cohesively, a bridge between old and new both in design and content.
Silver Winner: Patrick Clark, Bloomberg Businessweek
“American Mid: Hampton Inn’s Good-Enough Formula for World Domination”
Judges’ Comment: Patrick Clark’s deep dive on Hampton Inn’s huge success at being perfectly average is complemented by a 10-minute video that takes viewers inside this self-consciously mid brand. On the surface, that might not seem necessary – the hotel chain’s ubiquity means many have stayed at or at least driven by multiple Hampton Inns. But the video and the photos that accompany the story help highlight this curated averageness at work, complementary breakfast included. What our eyes might simply glance over in real life is seen through a new lens thanks to this Bloomberg story.
Bronze Winner: Francisco Alvarado and Nicole Guillen, The Real Deal
Collection includes: “Adam Neumann vs. El Portal,” “Adam Neumann’s Flow nabs $51M loan for $71M ElPortal site purchase, partners with Canada Global on mixed-use development,” “This controversial development site used to be a trailer park. Now it’s Adam Neumann’s next project”
Category 22: Best Real Estate Data Journalism Reporting
Gold Winner: Natalie Wong, Rachael Dottle, and Marie Patino, Bloomberg News
“A Wave of New Apartment Buildings Is Set to Take Over Midtown Manhattan”
Judges’ Comment: This story takes a complex shift in the real estate market and makes it clear, urgent, and highly relevant. By focusing on the transformation of empty office towers into housing, the reporting shows how cities are responding to both a housing crisis and a struggling office market at the same time. What makes the piece stand out is its strong use of data and examples. The story combines large scale trends with detailed reporting from specific projects, helping readers understand both the mechanics of conversions and their broader impact on affordability, policy, and urban life. This entry stands out for its clarity, depth, and relevance, turning a technical development trend into a compelling story about how cities adapt and who benefits from that change.
Silver Winner: Shaina Mishkin and Molly Cook Escobar, Barron's
“The LA Fires Burned Thousands of Homes. The Data Show Insurers Saw the Risks Coming.”
Judges’ Comment: This story takes a devastating wildfire and reveals the deeper, data-driven story behind it. By showing that insurers had already begun pulling back coverage before the fires hit, the reporting reframes the disaster as something that was not just tragic, but in many ways predictable. What makes the piece stand out is its powerful use of data and visualization. The reporting connects wildfire risk, home values, and insurance decisions, showing how high value homes in high risk areas created a perfect storm. The maps and comparisons make complex risk patterns clear and compelling. This entry stands out for its insight, clarity, and impact, turning a breaking news event into a deeper investigation of risk, markets, and the warning signs that were already there.
Bronze Winner: Veronica Dagher, Anne Tergesen, Stephanie Stamm, and Elizaveta Galkina, The Wall Street Journal
Collection Includes: “Americans Have $35 Trillion in Housing Wealth - and It's Costing Them,” “More Homeowners Find Themselves Underwater”
Honorable Mention: Steph Kukuljan, Josh Renaud, and Nassim Benchaabane, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Collection Includes: The Forces Shaping St. Louis Housing: “On some St. Louis streets, 70% of tornado victims are uninsured. Can recovery happen?” “Firm buys 700 homes in St. Louis area with unusual offer of ‘easy’ cash,” “Rents soar across St. Louis Region, especially where investors buy homes”
Category 23: Best International Real Estate Story
Gold Winner: Damian Shepherd, Bloomberg News
“Foxtons Staff Faced Groping and Slurs at London Property Broker”
Judges’ Comment: Damian Shepherd delivers a powerful accountability story that exposes a troubling workplace culture inside one of London’s most prominent real estate firms. By centering the reporting on firsthand accounts from young employees, he makes the impact immediate and deeply human. What makes the piece stand out is its depth and rigor. Shepherd backs up personal stories with documents, messages, and interviews across multiple offices, revealing patterns of behavior rather than isolated incidents. The reporting also shows how systems meant to protect employees, including management and HR, often failed to act. This entry stands out for its courage, clarity, and impact, turning individual experiences into a broader investigation of workplace culture, power, and accountability.
Silver Winner: Sarah Rappaport, Bloomberg News
“Developers Aim to Tackle Central London’s Last Luxury Frontier”
Judges’ Comment: Sarah Rappaport takes a familiar real estate story, luxury development, and gives it a fresh and compelling angle by focusing on a neighborhood on the edge of transformation. By positioning Bayswater as central London’s overlooked frontier, she creates a clear and engaging narrative of change. What makes the piece stand out is its sense of scale and detail. Rappaport shows how billions in investment, high end developments, and rising prices are reshaping the area, while grounding the story in vivid descriptions of place and market dynamics. This entry stands out for its clarity, perspective, and storytelling, turning a development trend into a broader look at how cities evolve, who benefits, and what is lost in the process.
Bronze Winner: Deborah Acosta and Eliot Brown, The Wall Street Journal
“After Backlash, Jared Kushner Drops Plan to Build a Trump Hotel in Serbia”
Category 24: Best Team Report - Real Estate
Gold Winner: Aldo Svaldi, Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Judith Kohler, and Kevin Hamm, The Denver Post
Collection Includes: “At a Crossroads: Downtown Denver Is Waiting for Its Rebound,” “Downtown Denver at a crossroads as offices sit empty, buildings go into default and safety concerns persist,” “Can downtown get its swagger back? Denver leaders agree it’s both possible and vital”
Judges’ Comment: This team report on Denver’s slow post-pandemic recovery shows the power of strong local journalism to draw attention to crucial issues close to home. The stories in this collection – a three-month reporting effort -- examine safety, the need for a revitalized downtown and office vacancy rates (they’re at 40-year highs). The journalists write with style, including a line about how Covid-19 turned the downtown “from the place to be to a place to flee.” And they zero in on key needs for a rebound, notably making people feel safe on 16th Street. They note that even discounted office space won’t compensate for workers who would prefer quiet home offices to “having random strangers shout at them, aggressively panhandle for money or try to sell them drugs.” Yikes. This ambitious project also uses an interactive map to explore vacancy rates and distressed properties. Kudos to the members of this ambitious group effort.
Silver Winner: Adam Babetski, Jimmy Cloutier, Jacob Geanous, Leia Green, Megan Guza, Katie Hovan, Hal B. Klein, Stephana Ocneanu, Jeremy Reynolds, Madaleine Rubin, Lindsay Shachnow, and Hailey Talbert, as well as photographers/videographers Sebastian Foltz, Giuseppe LoPiccolo, Sarah Qu, Lucy Schaly and King Jemison, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“The Pulse of Pittsburgh: 24 Hours Downtown”
Judges’ Comment: The team behind “The Pulse of Pittsburgh: 24 Hours Downtown” captures the magic of the Steel City’s people and places without being too boosterish. Through words, photos and videos, they introduce readers and viewers to locals like a bartender, commuters, volunteers, a parking attendant, the owner of a popular diner, a coffee owner and a barber. They pulled it off by getting a large cast of reporters, photographers and videographers to devote July 22 to this day-in-life storytelling project. Anyone intrigued by the mention of a pogo-stick championship that brought hundreds to Redbeard’s Sports Bar and Grill?! This powerful multimedia snapshot should go in a time capsule of this rejuvenated Pennsylvania city.
Bronze Winner (tie): Katherine Kallergis, Lidia Dinkova, Francisco Alvarado, and Kate Hinsche, The Real Deal
“Steve Ross’ Florida vision”
Bronze Winner (tie): Nicole Friedman and Dan Frosch, The Wall Street Journal
“A Rare Middle-Class Paradise in L.A. Was Swept Away by Flames”
Bronze Winner (tie): Noah Zucker, Jon Banister, Taylor Driscoll, and Billy Wadsack, Bisnow
“‘Affordable Housing Is an Oxymoron’: Why Homes for Low-Income Renters Are Far More Expensive to Build”
Honorable Mention: Kari Hamanaka and Suzannah Cavanaugh, The Real Deal
“Los Angeles Rising”
Honorable Mention: Kate King and Suzanne Kapner, The Wall Street Journal
“America’s Last Mall King Is Still in Charge, Even After a Deadly Diagnosis”
Honorable Mention: Ryan Wangman and Maddy McCarty, Bisnow
“2026 World Cup Stakes Are Bigger Than a Trophy - U.S. Affordable Housing Is at Risk, Too”
Honorable Mention: Deborah Acosta and Rebecca Picciotto, The Wall Street Journal
“Renters Are Conning Their Way into Luxury Apartments
Category 25: Best Design, Home or Shelter Magazine
Gold Winner: Peter Catapano and the Staff of Mansion Global, Mansion Global
Judges’ Comment: Mansion Global journalists deliver high-quality stories about high-end homes, interior design and resorts. They go beyond the ordinary, looking at “Earthships” (off-grid homes made from natural and recycled materials, often with greenhouses to grow produce), “boulder” designs (houses with giant chunks of granite from the property in foyers and even showers), glass ceilings (ideal for viewing sunsets and stars) and ski towns that aren’t Aspen (Big Sky, Montana; Telluride, Colorado; Whitefish, Montana; and Crested Butte, Colorado). Even readers with no desire to plop a huge slab of rock inside their residences should get a kick out of the intriguing, and often quirky, luxury real estate options highlighted in Mansion Global stories.
Category 26: Best Residential Real Estate – Trade Magazine
Gold Winner: Cara Eisenpress and the TRD Staff, The Real Deal, The Real Deal
December 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: The Real Deal staff makes its magazine a must-read, full of stories about larger-than-life characters. A case in point: the December cover story on Patrick Carroll, the self-made residential real estate developer who bought into the Sun Belt early and then, after selling his company, started behaving bizarrely and firing guns from his boat. (He blames previously undiagnosed bipolar disorder.) Other well-reported stories look at reality TV star Josh Flagg, South Florida townhouse brothers Salim and Kamil Chraibi, Opendoor CEO Kaz Nejatian, brothers Oren and Tal Alexander, and Dallas-Fort Worth single-family lot developer Mehrdad Moayedi. Even the front-of-the-book quotes in “In Their Words” highlight the colorful, usually well-spoken figures in the industry. “Few people will leave a place they call home because of a new mayor,” says one. The photos and design are first rate, too.
Silver Winner: Paige Tepping, Real Estate Magazine, RISMedia
February 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: In a publication packed with ads and stories, the journalists at Real Estate Magazine give readers what they need to do their jobs better – from trends to expect (more single-women buyers, who already hold a 24% share of the home-purchase market; all-cash buyers, who already account for 26% of home sales; and aging first-time buyers, with a median age of 38 now) to connection-building tips (asking clients what excites them most about moving to a new neighborhood). In the February issue, they highlight industry standouts, who often share inspiring quotes about why they love their jobs. One example, from the owner of YES Realty Partners: “Every day, I get to wake up and help people with one of the basic needs for their journey around the sun—shelter.”
Bronze Winner: Luke Baynes, Scotsman Guide Magazine, Scotsman Guide
July 2025 issue
Category 27: Best Commercial Real Estate – Trade Magazine
Gold Winner: Cara Eisenpress and the TRD Staff, The Real Deal, The Real Deal
April 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: Who can resist opening a magazine with the cover line, “Mr. Witkoff Goes to Washington”? The April issue features that story about Steve Witkoff’s path from developing luxury condos in Miami and New York to becoming a global envoy. Interestingly, people seem to like him. It’s par for the course for the first-rate journalists at The Real Deal, who cover everything from “It” condos (like Witkoff’s Shore Club collection in Miami) to companies rolling back DEI to a lawsuit filed by model Karolina Kurkova and her husband. Stories serve up conflict and tension and always seem like urgent reads. In other words, they’re never boring. People plow big money into real estate – and Real Deal Journalists are standing by to expertly document it.
Silver Winner: Randall Shearin, Student Housing Business
November/December 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: Student Housing Business packs its hefty November/December issue – with a cover package on top owners and managers -- with well-crafted, information-packed stories. The front-of-the-book “news in brief” section covers tidbits like a new joint venture planning 546 beds across 142 units near Penn State. A well-done Q&A with the executive director of university housing at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign meets the timely test because of the school’s significant enrollment growth – from 5,500 in the incoming class in 2013 to 9,207 in 2025. It also addresses problems common at many universities, such as aging infrastructure and insufficient housing. Another piece looks at whether smaller Tier 2 and Tier 3 university markets are worth the risk. It’s hard to imagine being in the student housing industry and not reading this magazine cover to cover.
Bronze Winner (tie): Matt Valley, Hayden Spiess, Eric Taub, Seniors Housing Business
August-September 2025 issue with ASHA 50 Supplement
Bronze Winner (tie): Samantha Rowan, Shihao Feng, Anna-Marie Beal, Randy Plavajka, PERE Credit
December 2025 issue
Honorable Mention: Suzann Silverman, Jessica Fiur and the CPE Editorial Team, Commercial Property Executive
July 2025 issue
Category 28: Best Real Estate Newsletter Issue Digital or Print
Gold Winner: Heather Stone and Glenn Demby, Commercial Lease Law Insider, Fair Housing Coach
May 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: Commercial Lease Law Insider’s May 2025 issue takes “news you can use” to new heights. It not only lays out the how-to’s and what-to-consider’s when negotiating with tenants about shared spaces and dealing with damages, but also includes two example lease clauses that provide the language and format so owners and managers can be proactive about these issues. As companies continue to redefine what being “in office” looks like for employees, landlords also need to adjust, and this issue helps mitigate the need to learn the hard way.
Silver Winner: Greg Dool, Blueprint, PERE
September 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: PERE’s Blueprint newsletter includes a variety of elements that make it a pleasant read from beginning to end — an introduction that serves as a summary for the entire issue so readers know what to expect; easily digestible briefs and blurbs of featured stories; and a pull quote, data snapshot and roundup of the latest published stories. It’s easy for newsletters to become merely serviceable, a copy-and-paste laundry list of the week’s work, but Blueprint’s streamlined approach betrays thoughtful editing at work, from the order of the offerings to the punny subheads such as “Swede spot” and “Knapp time.”
Bronze Winner: Sasha Jones, The Slice, Bisnow, Bisnow
August 2025 issue
Category 29: Best Newspaper Real Estate or Home Section
Gold Winner: Amanda Kludt and the Staff of The New York Times Real Estate Section, Senior Living Real Estate, The New York Times
November 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: The New York Times’ Senior Living special issue is a beautifully curated treasure trove of information that combines features on unique living situations (retirees who live on a college campus and take classes!) with practical information those of a certain age can use immediately (do’s and don’ts of downsizing). There is a lot of discourse right now about the negative effects of artificial intelligence, but one story describes how AI is being used at some senior living facilities to detect and potentially mitigate falls. The issue achieves its aim of collecting resources to help society’s older members navigate their next era in a way that is informed and fulfilling.
Silver Winner: Lois Weiss, Christopher Cameron, David Christopher Kaufman, Heather Senison, Beth Landman, Oshrat Carmiel, and Christopher Bunting, Palm Beach Boat Show, New York Post
March 2025 issue
Judges’ Comment: The New York Post’s Palm Beach Boat Show issue is fun, flashy and finely designed. From the front-page “You’ve Got Sail” to cheeky plays on words (“Livin’ La Vida Boca”) and typography (“Yacht$ to Watch”), the headlines lean into the often ostentatious stories necessitated by such an event. It might be tempting to let the visuals do the talking when you can choose from a plethora of images of supersize boats, hotels and mansions, but robust stories accompany each of these features. The result is a visual and informative guide to the latest real estate developments in Palm Beach.
Bronze Winner: Heather Halberstadt, Mansion, Wall Street Journal
January 2025 issue
Honorable Mention: Lois Weiss, Christopher Cameron, Christopher Bunting, and Anissa Lorenzi Boukourizia, Commercial Real Estate, New York Post
January 2025 issue
Category 30: Best Real Estate Web Site
Gold Winner: Stuart Elliott and the TRD Staff, The Real Deal
January 2025
Judges’ Comment: The Real Deal’s committed use of photo illustrations visually highlights stories beyond what a headline and lede/nut graf can do. The overall effect as you scroll through the website is a cohesive, curated look that unites the design elements of a magazine with the agility of a daily news site. The curated feel doesn’t end with the photo illustrations — the navigation bar; tabs for top stories, latest stories and stories “for you”; and regional sections as you scroll farther down the home page all make the website easy to navigate depending on the reader’s needs and interests.
Silver Winner: Catie Dixon, Mark F. Bonner, and Bisnow Staff, Bisnow
July 2025
Judges’ Comment: Bisnow’s layout is clean and easy to navigate. Stories are clearly marked with labels indicating region and topic area, and sponsored content is clearly demarcated while still integrated seamlessly in the web design. The use of different colors further helps categorize and organize, with job listings (blue) and press releases (teal) standing out separately from Bisnow’s orange scheme. Instead of a smorgasbord that can lead to information overload, the website is streamlined and pleasant to navigate, allowing for users to either find a particular story quickly or stay and scroll through the latest headlines.
Bronze Winner: Kerry Barger and Heather Halberstad, Mansion, The Wall Street Journal
February 2025
Honorable Mention: Laura Kinsler, GrowthSpotter, Orlando Sentinel
September 2025