Despite Challenges, Developers Get Their Groove Back

RealShare Apartments East 2013 is sponsored by ALM’s Real Estate Media Group, which publishes Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com.

Nearly 400 industry professionals convened at the Hyatt Regency hotel here yesterday to listen to insight given by leaders of the apartment market during the full-day event. Sharon Dworkin Bell, senior staff vice president of the National Association of Home Builders moderated the discussion, which included Humphreys & Partners Architects CEO Mark Humphreys; David Thompson, development director for Wood Partners; Todd Wigfield, Greystar‘s managing director of development; Joe Wilber, SVP of investments-East for Gables Residential; and Pinnacle Housing partner Michael Wohl.

In terms of trends, Humphreys indicated that there’s a “Manhattanization” going on across the country. That is, US markets that previously didn’t have a downtown are now heading in that direction. Downtown, he said, “is where people want to be. We’re seeing a high number of urban projects in tertiary markets.”