Rehab, urban redevelopment top list of real-estate trends

metromode, 2/26/2009

The Top-5 real-estate and development trends for 2009 all point toward urban, sustainable and new economy.

Giffels-Webster Engineers named infrastructure rehabilitation, urban redevelopment, energy generation, life sciences and healthcare expansion/renovation as the top development movements of 2009. The Rochester Hills-based civil engineering firm annually ranks the top five hottest growth areas.

Sustainability principles also play major roles in those five sectors, ranging from green building to developing alternative energy sources.

Infrastructure Rehabilitation was named because of the need to upgrade aging infrastructure and President Obama's push to use hundreds of billions of dollars to accomplish this very goal while helping to jump start the economy.

Urban Redevelopment made the cut because retail and residential re-development opportunities already exist in urban areas where the population and infrastructure foundation are in place. Reconfiguring these facilities will be cheaper to do, and coincide with the swing toward investment in urban areas.

Energy demand continues to grow as demand for just about every other commodity declines in the economy. The emphasis to develop renewable alternative energy sources is being pushed in the public sector, paving the way for energy generation to make the list.

Research-and-development facilities for the life sciences industry are also expected to expand as the Baby Boom generation enters its golden years. This will mean much greater investment in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and diagnostics and the research space needed to further develop these sectors.

Also accompanying this trend is the expansion and renovation of healthcare facilities. The aging population and infrastructure means that hospitals and other medical care spaces will have to be renovated and expanded to keep up with demand.

Source: Giffels-Webster Engineers
Writer: Jon Zemke

Rochester