After nearly eight years, workers are returning to a former General Electric factory in Fort Wayne. A complex financial package helped create a new home for one of Indiana’s largest employers at this postindustrial site in the U.S. Midwest.

Internationally acclaimed Chicago architect and Studio Gang founder, known for bringing a sustainable approach to tall buildings, to receive the prestigious ULI Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development.

Investors who specialize in “deconverting” condo properties back into rentals are finding opportunities. But the deals take patience and fortitude.

The COVID-19 pandemic made 2021 a historic year for the shipping and logistics industry, as rising e-commerce sent large retailers and general merchandisers scrambling for warehouse space to hold their inventory, supply-chain issues delayed shipments, real estate developers strained to keep up with demand, and local governments struggled to issue permits quickly with employees working from home.

Alternative lenders increased their market share in the commercial real estate debt sector in 2018, panelists said at a ULI North Texas event in March. That trend is likely to continue this year as competition among all types of debt providers heats up capital markets.

Texas markets are meeting a healthy demand for multifamily housing from millennials who are reaching renting age and baby boomers who are downsizing, while attracting investment from around the United States. At a recent conference, speakers said that fundamentals were generally strong with higher cap rates possible in tertiary markets such as Midland-Odessa, Waco, and Lubbock.

Experts suggest more comprehensive soil testing to ensure wildfire victims can safely return home

Despite the headwinds to rebuilding quickly and efficiently, just after the worst of the Los Angeles fires, ULI Los Angeles joined UCLA Ziman Center for Real Estate and the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate to shape a response plan, created in just six weeks.

Within days of the fires, the three institutions formed a Rebuild Advisory Committee. The Project Recovery report, produced by about 100 leading experts in land use, urban planning, and economic development, offers in-depth technical analysis and actionable recommendations to accelerate recovery and build long-term resilience in communities.

Obsolete buildings will constitute up to 50 percent of all new housing in cities

The term “Environmental, Social, and Governance,” or ESG, has been around for two decades, first being coined by the United Nations Global Compact in 2004. However, the rise of the framework has led to increasing political backlash, with some states outright banning ESG in investment decisions.

How seven U.S. cities are tackling the future of downtowns

From resilient parks to bold adaptive reuse, this year’s winners redefine urban innovation and community impact across the Americas

UrbanPlan is a hands-on simulation used to empower participants to shape the future of their built environment by more fully understanding the complex dynamics of urban development and the market and nonmarket forces that shape it. Established 21 years ago in collaboration with the Fisher Center of Real Estate and Urban Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, UrbanPlan was piloted in the Bay Area as a curriculum for high school and university students. The program now includes a variety of formats, including workshops for public officials and community members, and hosts programs throughout the United States and Canada, Europe, Asia and the United Kingdom.

In a world increasingly driven by environmental concerns and economic realities, the movement for sustainable commercial real estate has only gained momentum, despite shifting political tides.

A recent ULI webinar—with member speakers from ULI Toronto, ULI British Columbia, and ULI Alberta—addressed what leading real estate companies are doing to decarbonize their operations and development in anticipation of regulatory requirements.

“Cities need to grow to thrive,” Dan Doctoroff said. “But we can’t take growth for granted.” Doctoroff is the chairman and CEO of Sidewalk Labs, a subsidiary of Google parent Alphabet. Doctoroff was speaking at the 2020 ULI Europe Conference.

In the Waterfront Toronto RFP for Quayside, Alphabet’s Sidewalk Labs saw a key opportunity for a demonstration project unbound by the conventions of traditional urban planning or real estate economics. This was something new: a chance to innovate at the urban scale, to develop, deploy, and measure the success of a web of new technologies in an actual neighborhood.

Despite the monetary headwinds and continued economic uncertainty around the world, there is a strong belief that the global real estate industry is at a “pivot point,” with improving prospects ahead for renewed investment activity, according to the latest Emerging Trends in Real Estate^® Global Outlook 2024 from PwC and the Urban Land Institute.

Ten projects take advantage of financial tools that promote environmentally positive development

Despite economic and political uncertainties, a host of market pressures—such as growing connections between sustainability and financial performance, increasing regulations, extreme weather events, and the importance of health and social equity—are driving real estate companies to prioritize sustainability like never before.

Each year, ULI’s impressive lineup of global meetings kicks off in Europe with our real estate investment and development conference, held in Paris during the winter. The 2013 event, held February 5 and 6, drew more than 500 industry leaders from 24 countries around the world—reflecting a steady increase in the geographic diversity of attendees since we started hosting the meeting 17 years ago.

New lending by European banks is likely to remain strictly conservative, limiting liquidity for the European property market.

The problem of city making today does not so much concern making new ones as it does transforming those that already exist-especially suburbs-and edge-city developments. What can the United States learn from French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his goal to remake Paris?

As the real estate industry focuses increasingly on the mantra of carbon efficiency, owners and occupiers are scrambling to find ways to reduce carbon footprints. A recent ULI conference in Hong Kong brought together experts across a range of disciplines to discuss the migration to net zero for both new and retrofitted buildings.

ULI is excited to announce the launch of Art in Place, a global cohort of the Institute’s National and District Councils working independently and together to connect artists, developers, and community voices. The program is the next step in ULI’s ongoing commitment to creative placemaking focused on the integration of art, culture, and creativity as levers of community revitalization.

Two of Asia’s leading entrepreneurs gave real estate investors a glimpse into the worlds of Web 3.0 and deep tech at the ULI Asia Pacific Summit.

Rooftops designed to facilitate drone deliveries, whole floors in residential blocks dedicated to coworking or community spaces, and mobile supermarkets were among the futuristic concepts discussed at the 2022 ULI Singapore Annual Conference.

Technology is paving the way for a segment of investors, many of whom are “digital natives,” to explore real estate as an additional part of their investment portfolio and participate financially in the real estate sector like never before, said panelists speaking at the 2021 ULI Singapore Annual Conference, held both virtually and in person in early March.

The cover package for the 2019 Asia Pacific special issue is titled “Finding Balance: The quest for smart buildings, smart tourism, and smart climate strategies.” Other topics include “South Korea: Heritage at Jeonju Hanok Village,” “ China: Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland Hotel,” “Thailand: Dealing with Bangkok’s Climate Challenge,"and “Interview: Chairman Nicholas Brooke.” This special issue will be available at the ULI Asia Pacific conference in Shanghai and mailed to ULI members in Asia.