Karen Contoudis Buzard leads U.S. Markets Innovation at A&O Shearman, one of the world’s largest law firms. @GabrielMacht sat down with Karen to talk about lawyers building technology, and how she uses Harvey as a sparring partner.

Karen Bass made Los Angeles uninvestable for apartment investors. Mamdani froze the rent on a million New York apartments, and some owners are at risk of losing their buildings. That risk doesn't exist in Texas. Rent Control is banned by state law. Evictions for non payment of rent move fast also by state law. A new state law, SB 840, means multifamily and mixed-use projects are allowed "by right" on land zoned commercial, office, retail, or warehouse, no rezoning or council vote required. Smaller properties also get some tax predictability. Non-homestead investment real estate under roughly $5 million has a 20% cap on annual appraisal increases through 2026 (and this will hopefully get extended). Developers can further reduce tax volatility by partnering with cities on projects that include affordable units. None of this turns a bad deal good. But it makes a good deal here far more resilient than the same deal in a city where one mayor can rewrite the economics. Long Texas!