Economic Forecast: Experts weigh in on 2016

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As part of Hartford Business Journal's 2015-2016 Book of Lists we've added an economic forecast section in which top economists and banking, real estate, education and healthcare executives provided insights into the major issues facing Connecticut and their respective industries in 2016.

Below you'll find the full forecasts, which appear longer than the print versions. Due to space constraints, HBJ only published small snippets of each forecast in the Book of Lists publication. (View the digital edition here)

Economist Outlooks

Peter Gioia: 2016: A sea of navigable risks
Fred Carstensen: CT's state of uncertainty

Economists' 2016 Predictions

Real Estate

Less demand for overpriced properties: By Joanne Breen, Co-owner of ERA Sargis-Breen Real Estate in Newington, and president of the Greater Hartford Association of Realtors
First-time buyers, investors rule: By Sandy Maier Schede, Broker/owner of Maier Real Estate in Meriden, and 2015 president of the Connecticut Association of Realtors
CT public-policy decisions will drive home values: By Curt Clemens Sr., President/founder, Century 21/Clemens & Sons, Rocky Hill/West Hartford
Job stability, interest rates are housing’s ‘X’ factors: By Candace Adams, CEO, Berkshire Hathaway Real Estate Services New England in Wallingord
Compound impact of a growing economy: By Frank H. Hird, Vice president of O,R&L Commercial in Rocky Hill, and president of the Connecticut Chapter of Industrial and Office Realtors

Health Care

Health care is an economic engine: By Elliot Joseph, President and CEO, Hartford Healthcare
Medical liability and defensive medicine key issues: By Matt Katz, CEO, Connecticut State Medical Society
Medicaid’s progress and fragility: By Ellen Andrews, Executive Director, Connecticut Health Policy Project
Care coordination will be seen as cost-control opportunity: By John O’Connell, President, C. M. Smith Agency Inc.

Banking & Finance

Time for interest rates to climb: By Nicholas Perna, Economist, Webster Bank
Margin pressures remain: By Rick Cantele, President/CEO, Salisbury Bank & Trust, and president of the Connecticut Bankers Association
CT firms will be courted: By Peter Samson, Senior vice president and commercial regional leader, Berkshire Bank
State policies threaten CT’s economic parade: By George W. Hermann, President and CEO, Windsor Federal Savings & Loan, and president of the Connecticut Community Bankers Association (CCBA)
Economic momentum building: By Mark Vitner, Managing director and senior economist, Wells Fargo Securities

Education

Balancing budgets amid state budget cuts: By Mark Ojakian, President of the Board of Regents of the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities (CSCU) system
Diversity and campus climate key issues to watch: By Susan Herbst, President of the University of Connecticut
Developing Hartford’s future workforce: By Beth Schiavino-Narvaez, Superintendent of Hartford Public Schools
Controlling higher-education costs: By Walter Harrison, President of the University of Hartford
Higher-ed’s role in narrowing the inequality gap: By Michael S. Roth, President of Wesleyan University