Shown (from left) are: Secretary Ash; Sal Lupoli; Shawn Herlihy; Doug Kelleher and Robert Brown from Brookline Bank.

Boston, MA On Tuesday, November 17, Real Estate Finance Association (REFA) hosted a program in Lawrence, Mass. at the Riverwalk Properties. The program consisted of a networking reception and a presentation by Sal Lupoli, CEO & founder, Lupoli Companies; Secretary Jay Ash, secretary of housing and economic development, Commonwealth of Massachusetts; Shawn Herlihy, principal, Goedecke & Co., LLC; and Doug Kelleher, principal, Epsilon Associates, Inc. Members and guests learned about the Riverwalk Properties and the public/private partnership that led to Riverwalk’s success.

On Tuesday, December 1, as part of REFA’s Members-Only Luncheon Series, REFA welcomed Brian Golden, director of the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA). Director Golden provided an update on the BRA Reforms, what is happening in development and planning and how they are improving their policies and processes. The program was attended by 50 REFA Members and was held at Brown Rudnick at One Financial Center.

On Wednesday, December 2, REFA hosted a program on “The Market, the Fed and Interest Rates – Where do we go from Here?” Jason Lange and Regan Campbell, directors from Chatham Financial, shared their thoughts on the market, providing an economic overview, overview on interest rates and managing risk. The breakfast was held at Equity Office Properties, in the Marketing Suite at 100 Summer St.

On Thursday, December 3, REFA wrapped up the year with their Annual Holiday Happy Hour at The Merchant on Franklin St. Over 60 members and guests enjoyed a casual holiday reception to celebrate the year! The reception included a toy drive to benefit FamilyAid Boston.

In 2015 REFA hosted 24 educational programs featuring 60 industry leaders from the commercial real estate finance community. REFA’s membership is at all time high with 585 members including 250 Emerging Leaders. REFA would like to thank the speakers, the members and the 80 corporate sponsors for their help and support throughout the year! We look forward to working together in 2016!

To learn more about REFA including membership, events, and ways to get involved, please visit us at www.refa.org. Follow REFA on Twitter @REFABoston.