Julie Zulanas’ Post

While converting vacant offices to housing may seem like a helpful step forward, it’s not a catch-all solution for full downtown revitalization.

Like other major US cities, the City of Seattle is amending policy to encourage downtown office conversion. Seattle leaders also recognize the need for conversion to uses beyond residential, given a projected limit of 1,000 to 2,000 units amid a citywide need for 112,000 units estimated by King County, WA. Cities need strategies to support office-to-everything conversions. #Downtown #Conversion #FutureOfWork #CRE #Multifamily

Tuesday Newsday v.8.20.2024 In the land of mega office builds for Tech companies, San Francisco is changing up its strategy and is...loosening development regulation? After having the bottom fall out for Office space demand over the past few years in the downtown area of San Francisco, it appears the local government representatives are having a wakeup call. Recent legislation proposed by officials would remove the zoning requirement imposed onto developers to have a minimum amount of the mixed-use buildings be dedicated to Office space. Is this the Free Market winning out? Well, I can answer that - Yes, it is, and the answer is to have more Multifamily. If you are looking for help with you Multifamily Investments, give me a call. Hunter Rupp / 567.290.2012 / Hunter@EncoreREIS.com Encore Real Estate Investment Services #TuesdayNewsDay #OfficeToMultifamily #Multifamily #CommercialRealEstate #RealEstateInvestments https://lnkd.in/g4Pa8mxH

New York City's real estate sector is adapting to changes, especially in the wake of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s unclear stance on the 421a tax incentive replacement. Mayor Eric Adams's administration launched the Office Conversion Accelerator program in August, with 46 buildings currently enrolled. This initiative facilitates the conversion of office spaces into residential units by easing restrictions and simplifying the rezoning process for building owners. Already, work has started on four buildings, potentially adding 2,100 housing units. Notable projects include major overhauls at 25 Water Street, 90 John Street, 17 Battery Place, and 160 Water Street. The program is part of the city's broader efforts to address the housing shortage and rejuvenate central business districts by converting vacant office spaces into various types of housing, including affordable homes and dorms. The Adams administration is also working to rezone parts of Midtown to further enable office-to-residential conversions. The urgency for such transformations is highlighted by the increasing vacancy in Manhattan office spaces, reaching 77.8 million square feet in the fourth quarter of 2023, up from 69.9 million square feet in the previous year. #NYCRealEstate #HousingCrisisSolutions #OfficeConversionAccelerator #UrbanTransformation #ResidentialDevelopment #ManhattanRezoning #AffordableHousingNYC #RealEstateInnovation #MayorAdamsInitiative #NewYorkHousingFuture https://lnkd.in/e2SWmpHr

A reduced demand for office space after COVID-19, coupled with the housing crisis, is causing a wave of converting downtown buildings into homes in American cities, writes John Weigand at University of Miami. It could create more walkable cities in the process. #cities #sustainablecities #15minutecities #affordablehousing #housing

While I agree that apartment conversions aren't the only way to reverse downtown vacancies, I also don't think new apartment construction is the only answer. Urban revitalization involves more. Let's embrace repurposing vacant spaces creatively. According to the Brookings Institution, the first thing to come back as cities revitalize is entertainment, followed by residential. Let's prioritize entertainment in downtown areas to appeal to a diverse community. Imagine a vibrant children-focused destination—a unique addition considering the lack of options for this vital demographic in our city center. Let's think outside the box and enrich our urban landscape together! #willowpeak #minneapolisrenaissancecoalition #mrc #mympls #urbanrevitalization

There’s a lot to unpack here. The feasibility of converting office to residential and the legal hurdles to doing so must be treated as separate and distinct topics if New York City stands any chance of making progress on the housing issues facing our amazing home today. The cost of capital, estimated capital expenditure to convert, and nuances of floorplate sizes and dimensions are known impediments and will persist. However, eliminating or reworking various legal hurdles will go a long way: - The constructed before 1961 and 1977 dates are arbitrary and antiquated. Discussions are underway about shifting that date to 1990. For context a Millennial born in 1990 would be 33 or 34 years old today. - The limitation in so much that only select office districts are eligible is equally illogical and nonsense. - The rule that only certain types of residential conversions are eligible in existing residential zones must change too. Also, is the topic of parking requirements. Owners and developers want to eliminate it entirely because it takes away from real estate they can otherwise market for rent or sale at a higher return. However, without parking residents who drive or own a car will be left in the lurch, creating even more competition for street parking which has its own negative trickle down effect on traffic patterns and more. Hopefully, city and state officials will be able to agree on a plan this year that serves to benefit the most individuals even if it doesn’t necessarily please those who stand to benefit the most financially. #officetoresiconversion #realestate #newyorkcity

📝New changes in permitted development rules are set to make it easier to convert vacant commercial buildings into homes, aligning with the Long-Term Plan for Housing. 🔨Starting from 5th March 2024, these changes remove restrictions on how much floor space can be used and how big conversions can be, opening the door to turning old offices into vibrant homes. 🏚The update builds on the Class MA development rule introduced in August 2021, which already helped convert offices into homes, delivering over 73,000 new homes since 2015. 🌟These new rules will prioritise quality for office to residential redevelopments (and they'll still exclude certain structures like Listed Buildings, ensuring that the right standards are still met)! What are you thoughts on the new changes that have been put in place? #brownfield #officeconversion #residential

Good explainer here on trend and suitable building types from Michael Hennig, CEcD.

#wfh means more empty office buildings. New York City has come up with a bold plan to use them to ease the housing inventory crisis. #housingmarketupdates #realestate #officebuildings #housinginventory https://lnkd.in/exwNcFC3