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Building the Future: Innovative Projects Redefining CRE
Jennifer LeFurgy
Commercial real estate is evolving, with innovative projects across North America transforming our engagement with the built environment. This issue of Development highlights groundbreaking developments and thought leadership exemplifying creativity and adaptability:
Experiential retail reshapes shopping centers by offering immersive spaces that attract customers beyond traditional transactions. Learn how developers are integrating entertainment, technology and hospitality to create dynamic retail destinations.
In Toronto, The Birmingham honors history while meeting modern logistics needs. This project incorporates a preserved art deco facade from a former soup factory into a high-tech warehouse campus.
Portland, Oregon, is staging a comeback after years of regulatory constraints, affordability issues and controversial policies hampered its growth.
Kansas City’s CPKC Stadium marks a milestone in professional women’s sports. Read how this state-of-the-art venue sets new standards for soccer-specific stadiums and community-driven design.
We hope these stories inspire you as we navigate the future of commercial real estate together.
Stay Informed,
Jennifer LeFurgy, Ph.D.
Editor-in-Chief
In Brief
Notable facts and figures on the state of the commercial real estate industry, culled from media reports and other sources.
Industry Outlook
4.1%
The year-over-year increase in commercial real estate sales volume in February, based on data from MSCI Real Assets and reported by JPMorgan. All property sectors saw year-over-year growth in transaction volume, led by retail (up 105%) and office (up 55.2%). Hotels (20.2%), apartments (6.7%) and industrial (0.5%) followed.
Office
$1.2 Billion
The amount of office sector distress added during the fourth quarter of 2024, representing a significant decrease from the $3.5 billion average during the prior three quarters, according to Marcus & Millichap’s 2025 Office National Investment Forecast. “The current pool of distressed assets consists largely of obsolete older buildings and underperforming Class B properties, which offer near-term opportunities for investors seeking assets at notable discounts to replacement costs.”
140.1 Million
The total square feet that coworking spaces occupied in the United States at the end of February, marking a 15.2% increase year over year, according to Yardi Matrix. The company’s national office report for March also noted that coworking as a percentage of total office space has increased to 2%, up 30 basis points over the past year.
Data Centers
12%
The year-over-year percentage that rents increased for colocation data centers in 2024, according to JLL’s year-end report on North American data centers. The compound annual growth rate for rents since 2020 is 11%. Colocation vacancy rates reached an all-time low of 2.6% across North America last year.
Industrial
2,504
The number of industrial sales of facilities greater than 10,000 square feet to owner-occupiers in 2024. According to a report from CBRE in March, that represents a 32% increase over 2023. “Sales are increasing because investors are more willing to dispose of certain industrial assets, especially older ones. … Just over half of occupier acquisitions last year were for pre-1980 buildings.” The report noted that approximately 21,300 industrial leases are set to expire over the next three years, nearly 60% of which are in facilities built prior to 2000.
Multifamily
27%
The percentage that multifamily lending increased in 2024 over the prior year ($312 billion versus $246 billion). This marked the first year of positive momentum in multifamily lending activity since 2021, according to Lument’s national multifamily overview for the first quarter of 2025. “Diving into lending activity by capital source for commercial real estate and multifamily assets, the CMBS sector saw the most significant year-over-year origination volume increase at 150%, followed by investor-driven sources (52%).”
Build-to-rent
14
The number of submarkets — out of 194 nationwide — where build-to-rent (BTR) construction is currently concentrated. RealPage reported that out of 78,000 BTR units being built in the United States as of mid-March, approximately a third were located in six Texas submarkets within Dallas, Austin and Fort Worth; five neighborhoods in Phoenix; and in the Southern cities of Tampa, Atlanta and Raleigh-Durham.
REITS
93.3%
The occupancy rate of total REIT-owned properties in the four major property classes in the fourth quarter of 2024, based on data from Nareit’s quarterly REIT Industry Tracker. As reported by WealthManagement.com, “Retail led (97.0%), followed by apartments (95.7%) and industrial (95.0%). Office was the only sector below 95%, coming in at 86.2%.”
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