A number of cities in the U.S. Northeast are supplanting outdated office product with new thanks to strong, diversified economies; vigorous job creation; and increasing formation of businesses. Further driving development in the Northeast—New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey—is continuing demand from the education and medicine (“eds and meds”) and technology sectors, among others.
There is no “secret sauce” vital to creating an innovation community, but certain ingredients are necessary, ULI members were told during the 2018 ULI Fall Meeting in Boston.
While America’s South continues on a steady course with a growing population and an increasing number of jobs, officials are acting on some challenges, which include traffic, housing affordability, education needs, and the rising cost of construction.
Foxconn Technology Group is investing $10 billion to build some 22 million square feet (2 million sq m) of manufacturing space near Milwaukee, but other cities are also reaping the rewards of the Midwest’s growing tech sector.
Detroit’s bankruptcy marked a turn in the fate of the city. Along with the economic downfall came rare opportunities for investment, creation, and collaboration.
Could ownership of 250- to 400-square-foot (23 to 37 sq m) homes help low-income people acquire an asset and begin to accrue wealth? Panelists at the 2018 ULI Spring Meeting said it is certainly an idea worth trying.
Companies understand the attraction of more economical, more comfortable spaces. But lenders still need to be educated about net-zero energy’s lower operating costs.
E-commerce has brought industrial into the 21st century, said panelists at the ULI Spring Meeting, and technology has become more sophisticated in today’s industrial offerings. More important, industrial developers are constructing product that provides flexibility for tenant users, with more container parking storage and additional car parking if the tenant is an e-commerce user.
After years of planning, the first phase of one of Washington, D.C.’s most ambitious projects, the Wharf, opened in October. The Wharf is but one of the ambitious real estate developments planned, under construction, or recently completed along waterfronts in America’s Mid-Atlantic region, including D.C., Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.
The Southeast region continues to generate steady gains in commercial real estate performance as positive employment momentum converges with generally limited development pipelines.
The first 100 days of the new U.S. administration has been marked by uncertainty and ambiguity—and while foreign real estate investors are concerned, they still believe the United States is a good place to invest. But panelists speaking at the ULI Spring Meeting in Seattle said they are optimistic about reforms to FIRPTA and more investment in infrastructure.
Emerging technologies will bring major changes to the real estate industry, prompting questions that people will be pondering over the coming months and years. “We’ve got to restart our thinking about what we do,” said Paul Doherty, chief executive officer and president of Memphis-based the Digit Group, a leading provider of “smart city” solutions.
