\u201cThat is the result of being in a housing crisis, and without new product being built at the same pace as demand.\u201d<\/p>\n Redevelopment of older buildings is attractive to tenants, yielding higher rents. While investors are reaping the benefits.\u00a0Since the pandemic, the demand for retail and office space is down, while that for apartments are up.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOne estimate could be that renovations could cost about 30 to 40 percent less than new construction for the same number of units,\u201d says Emil E. Malizia, a research professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. \u201cTotal development cost per unit should be less as long as the cost of the site and building is not significantly more expensive than the cost of site acquisition for new construction.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe trend toward office conversions is a significant departure from the last decade when hotel conversions were popular,\u201d says Ressler. Old hotels were relatively easy to turn into apartment buildings, because the existing floorplans and utilities were already a good fit with residential use. \u201cHowever, consistent urban demand and increased preference for open-plan layouts and out-of-the-box designs revealed the housing potential in non-residential buildings.\u201d<\/p>\n Creating new apartments by converting and updating older buildings, has proven to be a lucrative investment for developers.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.swetconstructiongroup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/building-1804030_1920-300x200.jpg\")
\u201cWe will likely see a fair amount of this\u2014redevelopment and converting properties to apartments\u2014over the next few years,\u201d says John Sebree, senior vice president and national director of multifamily for Marcus & Millichap in an article in Wealth Management.<\/a><\/p>\n