Fifth annual Spring Housing Forum to examine market trends in Virginia
Panelists will discuss what’s driving the market, what’s slowing it down and what’s ahead for housing in Virginia.
By Megan Nash
The VCU Kornblau Real Estate Program will host the fifth annual Industry Talks Spring Housing Forum on Thursday, April 17—a virtual panel conversation focused on housing trends and marketing conditions across Virginia.
The webinar runs from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m. and is free to attend with advance registration.
Jim Napier, senior executive officer and chairman at Napier Realtors ERA, will return as moderator. Panelists include:
- Laura Lafayette, CEO, Richmond Association of REALTORS®
- Richard Kuhn, President, StyleCraft Homes of VA
- Ryan Price, Chief Economist, Virginia REALTORS®
Part of the Industry Talks series, the forum has become a regular fixture for professionals tracking residential construction, housing policy and real estate trends across the region. Last year’s session drew more than 700 registrants and covered topics ranging from affordability and supply constraints to the shifting expectations of homebuyers.
This year’s panel is expected to address the market’s response to interest rate fluctuations, inventory pressures and development outlooks heading into the second half of the year.
“Laura Lafayette, Jim Napier and I first met in 2015 to explore the idea of hosting a Spring Housing Forum. While various factors prevented an in-person event, the onset of the pandemic created an unexpected opportunity to reimagine our approach. We launched the inaugural forum as a webinar on April 1, 2021,” said Robert Taylor, executive director of the Kornblau Real Estate Program. “Five years in, it’s become a reference point for our students—something they return to as they try to understand how housing markets respond to uncertainty, growth and policy decisions.”
Registration for the 2025 Spring Housing Forum is now open.
About the Kornblau Real Estate (KRE) Program
The origins of the Real Estate Program can be traced back to the 1950s when the first real estate course was introduced at Richmond Professional Institute. In 1969, the Alfred L. Blake Chair was established by the Virginia Realtors® Foundation of the Virginia Association of Realtors® and in the early 1970s the program was started. A significant milestone was reached in 2008 when the program was renamed the Kornblau Real Estate Program, thanks to the generous contribution of Sam Kornblau, a prominent Richmond businessman and philanthropist.
Today, the program offers a wide range of educational opportunities, including undergraduate and graduate degrees in real estate, as well as a graduate certificate program. It actively contributes to the real estate community by hosting events like the annual Real Estate Trends Conference, Real Estate Market Outlook and Spring Housing Forum Webinars, among other educational initiatives. Additionally, the Kornblau Institute serves as a platform for scholars to engage in impactful and high-quality research on various aspects of commercial and residential real estate.
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