Colliers Takeaways from the ULI Spring Meeting

Colliers put together a list of points they heard in sessions and conversations at the Urban Land Institute’s spring meeting in Toronto in May. These aren’t a list of the grand mysteries of commercial real estate guaranteed to make you wealthy in 30 days or your money back, but they offer a set of facts and ideas that might spark ideas for someone’s business. Here are a few to consider.

1. “Designers are looking at the wellness component of buildings since we spent 90% of our time indoors.” Wellness is important and also ties into too many aspects of construction and facilities maintenance, including HVAC and lighting design, windows, space planning, materials selection, and more. It also ties into technology to monitor conditions and better manage them.
2. “The Fed mad a bet several years ago that innovation would tame inflation in a low-interest rate policy environment. For many years it worked.” This speaks to the limits of assumptions in economics and finance. Given the impact of the whole range of pandemic relief, it also suggests that watching and planning for asset inflation, separate from general price and services increases, might be a wise step to better buy when prices are down and hold or sell when they are up.
3. “Office landlords are looking for new ways to generate income streams, from food and beverage to event or conference spaces.” Given the uncertainty of the office sector, that is understandable. However, new income streams can mean unintentionally backing into other types of businesses. Owners might consider bringing in some expertise to help structure a new initiative.
4. “Typical multifamily properties use 33% more energy than single-family homes.” The observation seems counterintuitive but deserves consideration of where the energy is being expended and what ways owners and operators can reduce the use and cost. Also, how renewable generation on a property might mitigate the situation.
5. “Today’s capital market environment is slowing down and, in many cases, stopping the energy efficiency/transformation of buildings.” It does cost money, and when things are tight that may seem foolish to those paying the bills. But it is good to remember something from heavy industry: preventative maintenance and upgrades. Putting off needed changes can ultimately become more expensive. Best to do a thorough financial and economic analysis before making a reactive decision.
6. “Green roofs and water harvesting technologies aim to prepare building owners for future cloud burst events—large rainfall in a short period.” Multiple areas have learned how devastating a monsoon-like experience can be if unprepared. Having ways of absorbing and redirecting water so it can be put to use can be a way of not just saving a building but of reducing utilities costs.
7. “If retail is considered a means of distributing goods, similar to industrial, does this provide a buying opportunity for big-box/open-air retail centers?” It sounds attractive if one remembers that buildings don’t necessarily go from one type of use to another.