He continued, "Queens has more nationalities, languages and cultures than any place on the planet. We own five office buildings there, in Jamaica, Forest Hills, Jackson Heights and Flushing and the office market is getting really strong. We have leased 300,000 to 400,000 square feet in the last few years.

"We also have retail properties, they're strong neighborhood chains like Barnes & Noble, Rite-Aid, strip centers, supermarkets and more," says Muss. "Shoppers there look to patronize local vendors and the population growth ensures the success of the vendors.”

Panelist Rachel Loeb, director of development, The World-Wide Group, was similarly bullishness on Queens retail. “We've been repositioning a retail spot in Woodside and the interest has been remarkable. Two years ago, we bought a property in Long Island City at $90 per square foot and now development sites are going for $300 per square foot, so you can't even justify buying new dirt to develop.

Asserted Tal Bar-Or, managing director, Meridian Capital Group, “It's always been a good infill market, it's just finally becoming cool. The pitch to lenders is that it's a deep, stable market.”

But of course, nothing is perfect. And if there's one thing Queens needs, on the whole, it's retail, noted Thomas Donovan, partner, Cushman & Wakefield.

“The borough is really underserved when it comes to retail that's going to be the real growth segment,” he said. “Someone is going to say 'there are two to three million people here with real jobs, how did I not see this?'”

One other negative is a lack of cityscaping, said Loeb. “The city hasn't invested in that. The different areas need to be knitted together so people feel like they can go from place to place.”