Leading Commercial Real Estate Group Gets New Name
Rebranding a statewide player in industrial, office, retail and mixed-use development.
Milwaukee skyline with The Couture, US Bank Center and Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons. Photo by Urban Milwaukee staff.
A statewide commercial real estate organization with a confusing name has rebranded.
NAIOP Wisconsin is now CREDA Wisconsin, short for Commercial Real Estate Development Association. The change is part of a broader rebranding involving 55 North American chapters and more than 21,000 commercial real estate professionals worldwide.
“For nearly a quarter century, NAIOP Wisconsin has been the voice of commercial real estate development across our state,” said chapter CEO Jim Villa in a statement. “Our members have always represented far more than an acronym — they are the developers, builders, investors and professionals who shape Wisconsin’s built environment.”
Villa said the new name more clearly communicates the organization’s mission to policymakers, industry partners and people entering the commercial real estate profession.
The Wisconsin chapter was established in 2003. Its parent organization, formerly known as NAIOP Corporate and now called CREDA Global, was founded in 1967. It was originally the National Association of Industrial Parks and later the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties.
Organization leaders said the NAIOP acronym no longer adequately reflected the range of industries and professions represented by the group.
Members work on industrial, office, retail, mixed-use, life sciences and data center developments, among other property types.
“Our members are driving some of the most significant economic and community-building projects in Wisconsin,” said Brad Amundsen, the organization’s 2026 board president and a senior vice president and regional manager for commercial real estate banking at Associated Bank.
Amundsen said the rebranding would strengthen the group’s advocacy and industry partnerships while better representing the breadth of Wisconsin’s commercial real estate development industry.
In addition to hosting industry events and professional development programs, the organization advocates on state legislation and public policy issues affecting commercial real estate. It also supports workforce development and educational initiatives intended to attract and train future industry professionals.
In 2025, it advocated for the Department of City Development to adopt a formal TIF policy. In 2023, Villa was part of a coalition seeking a long-term funding solution for American Family Field.
The organization said its existing events, advocacy efforts, member services and other programs will continue without interruption.
Updated branding and communications are expected to roll out throughout summer 2026. The organization’s new website is credawi.org.
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