The push in California for increased housing has caused many of the state’s large cities to re-evaluate property primarily zoned as commercial or industrial. In fact, a good number of projects in many areas now are getting the go-ahead for conversion to residential functions, changing long-time manufacturing structures or former commercial buildings into high-density housing instead.
This type of purpose-change investing has been both revitalizing areas suffering downturns due to less economic activity as well as alleviating housing shortages with boosted numbers in residential properties for rent or sale.
Conversion Fever is Picking Up
One of the big advantages of property conversion, notes Steven Taylor LA, ends up being the downstream effect it has on similar properties in the same greater location. As more and more people come in to take a look at a property advertised for high-density living, they also look around in the same area for other options that are comparable and offer the same geographic benefits.
So, in essence, as a big redevelopment project takes place, it triggers ripple effects for similar apartments and high-density properties within walking distance as well. If they have vacancies, those same spots become competitive and attractive to the same folks interested in the big new conversion project down the street.
This conversion fever ends up being contagious, triggering hopscotch demand from one property to the next in the same general area. But it is temporary. Once the project is over, then the market re-adjusted and moves back to its normal mode. So the timing of advertising does matter to attract this moving target.
Koreatown Represents a Recent Example
Big movements in LA’s Koreatown have immediately added 75-plus units of living apartments as developers continue to keep converting former commercial property. That’s after another project was also in play for the same location with at 160-plus unit residential building as well. That’s all in addition to smaller projects in the same area with 10 and 15-unit apartment setups as well as medium-sized units as well.
In addition to the above, parking projects are also in play for Koreatown to alleviate street congestion and the competition for nightly parking as well. That includes a new project in play to add another 120-plus spaces under a building only needing 40 of those spaces for its own tenants. It’s really a tidal wave of paradigm change as the land use purpose in LA neighborhoods continues to morph with new projects and concepts for re-use.
Paying Attention to Land Use Changes Proposed Can Pay Off
With local expertise like Steven Taylor Los Angeles resources helping monitor big redevelopment and land use changes, both investors and those looking for new market entries to sell to can easily leverage windows of opportunity as they come up.
Again, it doesn’t last forever, but working with a Los Angeles real estate resource that is tapped into the big changes occurring in a given neighborhood can easily give an investor a sizable edge in riding a redevelopment ripple effect across other properties too.
