GRAND RAPIDS, MI—Multifamily developments have been sprouting upthroughout the Midwest in the past few years and most expertsbelieve this will continue in 2015. But however strong the economygets, the go-go days of 2007 will not return. “The last downturnhas made everyone far more cautious when doing due diligence onprojects, especially multifamily,” Joe Elias tellsGlobeSt.com. The Michigan native has spent 15 years developing realestate projects in the region, and recently helped launch the Grand Rapids, MI—basedLoquidity, a real estate crowdfunding platformthat aims to build communities by drawing in investment that mightotherwise gravitate toward the coasts.

But Elias also believes that many factors will keep multifamilydevelopments coming online in the Midwest even if developers have asomewhat more cautious attitude. In much of the region, forexample, developers, municipal officials and potential renters arelooking to create or inhabit living environments that are moreurban, or “maximize social interaction,” making multifamilydevelopments far more attractive than more traditional homes.

Furthermore, the caution that inhibits some developers ismirrored by a similar caution among bankers when it comes to givingloans, and Elias expects that to continue for awhile, making peopleeven more interested in renting rather than buying homes. He saysthat he attended the most recent Urban LandInstitute conference, and many participants were talkingabout this desire for urbanization. Elias expects an increasingnumber of renters will look for smaller apartments, some as smallas 500-square-feet, in developments that can provide green space,the ability for them to socialize with neighbors, and quick accessto downtown job centers.