The search for new growth and potential out-performance is shifting real estate allocations toward niche sectors such as cold storage, medical office, single-family rentals (SFR), and senior housing.

With a rapidly expanding market, navigating the sea of financing mechanisms is a challenge. These are more than just funding sources. They are strategic tools that channel capital into sustainable projects while also managing environmental risks and delivering financial returns.

Los Angeles-based impact fund manager SDS Capital Group has launched a new capital platform—SDS Impact Debt (SDSID)—that aims to bring much needed, low-cost debt to the affordable housing market. It is an asset-backed model that offers below-market financing (both permanent and construction) for affordable housing projects—and is potentially scalable across the U.S.

TeamLHBK from the University of Cambridge in the UK has been named the winner of the sixth annual ULI Hines Student Competition—Europe.

As student housing needs evolve, developers are rethinking design, creating dynamic, experience-driven communities that promote connection and well-being.

In early February 2025, hundreds of stakeholders and real estate professionals gathered at DeSales University for a meeting sponsored by ULI Philadelphia and Lehigh Valley Planning Commission and supported by ULI’s Terwilliger Center for Housing and Lehigh County Commissioners. The first installment of a three-part Technical Assistance Panel (TAP), “Housing Supply and Attainability Strategy in the Lehigh Valley” aimed to open the conversation and further shape the technical assistance work to follow.

More than a century ago, the Baltimore waterfront was a working harbor. After a massive 1970s redevelopment that turned the area into the centerpiece of Baltimore’s tourism industry, the American Institute of Architects called it “one of the supreme achievements of large-scale urban design and development in U.S. history.” Yet it became insolvent in 2019. Key lessons learned here can prevent this cycle from repeating as we envision what the next 100 years might hold for the center of Charm City.

Commemorating the 30th anniversary of the tragic bombing in downtown Oklahoma City finds the city itself experiencing nothing short of an amazing urban renaissance, after having pivoted from a suburban focus to a vibrant celebration of its central business district.

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

Experts encourage the creation of community rebuilding authorities and
other measures to ensure the best-case scenario for recovery after January’s wildfires

Nestled in the forested hills west of Napa Valley, Enchanted Hills Camp—which is owned by LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired—has provided unparalleled recreational opportunities and skills training for blind and low-vision campers of all ages since 1950. After the devastating Napa wildfires of 2017 destroyed more than 25 structures and in excess of 900 trees on the property, the camp was not only rebuilt but also reimagined.

In the aftermath of California’s devastating January fires, which caused more than $164 billion in losses, experts are calling for urgent reforms in wildfire insurance policies. Advocates, including Darcy L. Coleman of Alagem Capital, emphasize the need for legislation that empowers the insurance commissioner to mandate incentives for fire-hardening and community mitigation efforts. They warn that, without proactive measures to address skyrocketing premiums and inadequate coverage, homeowners are sure to face heightened financial risks when disaster strikes.

Existing properties get makeovers to provide sustainable options for vulnerable populations

In 2014, a ULI Advisory Service panel made recommendations about the future use and preservation of Houston’s Astrodome, among the first indoor sports facilities in the world.

In Jersey City, N.J., commuters recently started using what is believed to be the first moving sidewalk designed as a permanent facility for the large-scale movement of pedestrian traffic.