VIDEO: JLL Chief Stephanie Hyde on Areas Where Clarity Is Emerging for Real Estate

Stephanie Hyde, JLL's chief executive for the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said she senses more optimism about the real estate sector this year and says it is time to move beyond "navel-gazing" about market concerns.

"Everyone is glad to put 2023 to bed" at this point, she said in an interview with CoStar News at the Mipim conference in Cannes, France.

Hyde, who took over in 2021 after 25 years at the auditing and consultancy giant PwC, says she's been involved in more conversations about more opportunities this year than she has in the recent past. Clients are focused not just on dealmaking but on making their properties more environmentally sustainable and keen on tapping technological advances.

Hyde said she's even sensing more optimism about the office sector. The industry can stop debating whether people are going to return to the office, she said. Workers are back, with occupiers and landlords settling on about "3.1 days a week" of in-person attendance.

Check out the video above to hear more of Hyde's thoughts about prospects across the United Kingdom, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.