MIAMI—When John C. Portman, IV, COO of Portman Holdings, looks back on 2014, he'll have fond (and refreshing memories) of how equity financing continued its recover and construction debt financing softened, at least a little. He told me 2014 gave us a steady rise in competition among equity players—and that resulted in increased international capital heading into secondary markets, with primary focus on urban cores.

“Secondary markets are booming,” Portman tells GlobeSt.com. “These shifts in 2014 have left owners more willing to exit and sell into the market. Overall performance of assets has improved enough to stave off some of the 10-year CMBS maturities that many were expecting to default. In some cases, existing assets are already becoming over-levered.”

Overall, Portman concludes, 2014 was a strong year for the commercial real estate industry. What does that mean for 2015? Moving into the new year, Portman's team is focused on development in primary urban locations within what he calls tier 1.5 and 2.0 cities. With that focus in mind, he made some strategic predictions.