NEW YORK CITY-The regulatory environment and upcoming issues on the 2012 Congressional calendar are bound to have an impact on commercial real estate. Add to that uncertainty about next year’s presidential election and the time was right for GlobeSt.com’s most recent webinar, titled “Charging the Hill: Commercial Real Estate and the 2012 Congressional Agenda.” The webinar was presented by Zurich.

The webinar featured four industry insiders and was moderated by John Salustri, content director of ALM Media’s Real Estate Media Group. Those on the panel were Stephen Renna, CEO of CRE Finance Council; Clifton “Chip” Rodgers, Jr., SVP of the Real Estate Roundtable; Bob Schachat, a partner at Ernst & Young; and Boyd R. Zoccola of the Hokanson Cos. Inc. and chair and CEO of the Building Owners & Managers Association.

Of the impact of a stalemated Congress, Renna said that it would be uncertainty. “Particularly as we have to address our budget deficit issues and our ability to issue debt,” he said. Business leaders like real estate executives are having to address the unknown and find it difficult to make decisions, “in an environment that has such a pall of uncertainty.”

Rodgers added that he thinks “policy makers have largely lost sight of the end game.”

Schachat, from Ernst & Young, said that “a stalemate means that things are not happening that should be happening.” He added that there are all multiple incentives that are expiring this year that need to be renewed.

Salustri then asked panelists for their take on the impact of Dodd-Frank on the commercial real estate industry. “A year after it’s been signed into law, this continues to haunt the financial services industry,” Rodgers said, adding that he gave it “very low marks.”

Some of the many topics covered included:

* CMBS and risk retention

* President Obama’s Better Building’s Initiative

* FIRPTA withholding

* The Volcker Rule within Dodd-Frank

* Carried interest

You can view the free webinar here.