February 2025 Industry Speakers
John Hunt President MarketNSight & ViaSearch ![]() |
John Hunt is the Chief Analyst and Principal of MarketNsight, providing market analysis for 40 markets across the Southeast. With over 30 years’ experience in the housing industry, his emphasis has been on both qualitative and quantitative analysis, which has led to extremely accurate modeling and forecasting. John was part of the team in September 2006 that predicted the Great Recession and housing crisis of 2008. His data was used by Georgia Senator Johnny Isakson on the Senate floor in 2009 to help pass the “First Time Homebuyer Credit Extension”. He also accurately predicted the dramatic loss of First Time Buyers after 2013 and tied it to the disappearance of distressed building lots. In June 2019, John was the first in the nation to call the bottom of the 2018/2019 housing collapse, tying it to rise and fall of interest rates. During the COVID-19 pandemic, MarketNsight began providing weekly updates to their customers. This cutting-edge reporting allowed John to be the first in the nation to announce the beginning of the pandemic housing boom on April 21, 2020. By the spring of 2021, John was the first in the country once again – this time identifying the bottom in supply amid the continuing sales boom. John is also on the leading edge of Millennial and Active Adult buying trends and has advocated for the zoning of more dense housing, including options like the “Missing Middle”. John is a highly sought-after speaker on the economy and real estate and is regularly quoted and published in local and national outlets, including CNN, FOX, Money INC, Bloomberg, Builder Magazine, The AJC and the Atlanta Business Chronicle. |
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Mike Alexander Chief Operating Officer Atlanta Regional Commission ![]() |
Mike Alexander is the Chief Operating Officer of the Atlanta Regional Commission, managing the Community Development, Natural Resources, Research & Analytics, Transportation Planning, Mobility Services, Aging and Independence Services, Workforce Development, and Homeland Security Departments of the ARC. Mike has over 20 years of public policy experience focused on regional and local community planning. As the COO, he leads this multidisciplinary, professional staff in the fields of transportation planning, environmental planning, community and workforce development, economics , aging services, and demographic forecasting. He is a graduate of the ARC Regional Leadership Institute, Leadership De Kalb, and Leadership Atlanta. Originally from South Carolina, Mike attended Auburn University where he received a dual masters degree in Public Administration and Community Planning. He served as a Marine Infantryman in Desert Storm. |
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Patrick Barkey Director of Research Business and Economic Research ![]() |
Patrick Barkey has recently stepped down after 16 years as Director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER) at the University of Montana. He continues to serve as Director of Research at BBER. He has been involved with economic forecasting and policy research for more than 40 years, in both the private and public sectors. He has authored studies on energy development, tourism, labor markets, tax policy and international trade. He is the Past President of the Association for University Business and Economic Research (AUBER), a national organization of regional business research centers founded in 1947. The BBER is the preeminent business research center in Montana. Housed in the College of Business, for 46 years it has produced the Montana Economic Outlook Seminar, a half-day program devoted to the national, state and local economic outlook that now is held in 10 cities across Montana in February. Barkey also hosts the Montana Economic Minute, a daily podcast on economic issues that has aired on radio stations throughout the state since 2008. He holds a B.A. and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan. |