A new report, Supporting Smart Urban Development: Successful Investing in Density, is the result of collaboration between a powerful group of innovative real estate investors and developers that are actively building the cities of the future. Collectively, this group owns or manages over US $300 billion worth of real estate assets worldwide.

Growing cities such as Hong Kong are at the epicenter of what Richard Florida has dubbed “the new urban crisis,” with the city’s success sending house prices soaring out of reach of the average resident. The author and urbanist, who is director of cities at the Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto, spoke at the 2018 ULI Asia Pacific Summit in Hong Kong.

Hines, which recently opened operations in Athens, offers its view of prospects for an economic recovery following nearly a decade of austerity.

Just released: Read stories, hear from leaders, and see the progress ULI members made in the Americas and beyond in our 2017 Annual Report.

Brexit and the recent U.S. and French elections came up in many conversations at ULI Germany’s recent Urban Leader Summit in Frankfurt. Although panelists said they are concerned about the geopolitical changes afoot, the domestic German economy remains strong.

While it is generally known that good schools enhance property values, it is not always clear how to improve an existing school system in a way that would benefit a community. Speakers at the 2016 ULI Fall Meeting described their approaches to adding value with stronger schools in both distressed urban neighborhoods and affluent greenfield developments.

Encouraging economic news released in August heightened the potential that the Fed will increase interest rates. But this good news proved to be a bit too positive, as it may have contributed to a withdrawal in the real estate investment trust sector. Plus, interest rate survey data from Trepp.

Author Gary Sernovitz sees the American oil and gas renaissance as “the Internet of oil, a spark . . . that led to an industrial change of such scope and magnitude that we have woken up . . . in a once impossible world.” Yet public understanding of the shale revolution has lagged, leading to hype, scaremongering, and a failure to candidly discuss its urgent moral, technological, regulatory, and environmental challenges.

Even as the broader equity markets fell, real estate investment trusts posted positive returns as economic uncertainty once again took center stage. The Federal Reserve Board’s decision not to raise interest rates this month was good news for REITs in terms of keeping their cost of capital low, but also reflected some weak economic news that could mean economic growth is faltering. Plus, interest rate survey data from Trepp.

Implementation of the Affordable Care Act has driven both health care–related job growth and demand for real estate in the United States. But health care REITs are not immune from external market challenges, and they have thrived in the current low interest rate environment. Plus, interest rate survey data from Trepp.