In-fill Development Will Increase Predicts ULI by Lew Sichelman
"Infill" development in which home builders fill in small parcels that have been passed over in previous years will be the favored strategy among housing professionals in the coming year, according to the Urban Land Institute. In its annual "Mid-Year Outlook," the ULI places infill housing at the top of the list as the construction sector offering the best development prospects. The Washington-based non-profit education and research group rates infill housing a better bet than seniors housing, office construction, high-income multi-family rentals, resorts, even golf course communities. And many of the 228 ULI members who provided their insights for the forecast agree. "The days of 'commodity development' more of the same old thing are long past," said G. Ronald Witten of M/PF Research in Dallas. "Development opportunities will be focused on new, freash product concepts, such as infill redevelopment." James Todd of the Peterson Cos., a Northern Virginia developer, said problems with traffic congestion are forcing his firm to "favor" close-in and infill projects. "As transportation and sprawl-related issues get more challenging," agreed William D'Elia of EDAW in San Francisco, "infill and mixed-use development will increase." Even apartment specialists are searching for parcels already served by roads, sewer and other important components of the infrastructure. They're not easy to find, but they're worth searching for, said Ed Geraghty of Equity Residential Properties Trust in Atlanta. "The best multi-family investment/development opportunities will be in harder-to-build infill locations...and in the downtowns of major cities," Geraghty said. J. Ronald Terwilliger of Trammel Crow Residential, a large, national apartment builder based in Atlanta, said he believes "traffic congestion and the continuing growth of mature, childless households will cause the growth in urban development to become a secular trend continuing over the next decade." With infill development leading the way, the ULI also expects the entire housing sector to thrive. Even with some slowing in sales resulting from higher mortgage rates, the forecast predicts prices will continue to rise "at a strong pace," albeit slightly below the levels seen over the previous 12 months. | 
