Real estate industry tackles obstacles

Drones, Twitter and hackers.

Those are three of the most pressing issues facing the real estate industry going into 2016 and beyond, according to the Counselors of Real Estate. Founded in 1953, Chicago-based CRE is an invitation-only global organization that provides information and advice on residential and commercial real estate and land deals and matters. The group held its annual convention last month in Charlotte, and created a list of five key insights into what will drive real estate and economic decisions in the near future. The list includes:

Box it: E-commerce will continue to siphon away business from brick-and-mortar stores, especially big-box retailers. So “finding a format that is compatible with the needs of the
customer is essential,” CRE says in a statement. That includes smaller stores that can integrate with Web shopping.

Flying machines: Drones, says CRE, are “not novelties, toys, hazards or nuisances.”

Drones, instead, provide information in real time, and in locations not easily accessible by conventional transportation. “Drones are more affordable and available than ever, making aerial data gathering a mandatory piece of the real estate tool set,” says Noah Shlaes, with Newmark Grubb Knight Frank in Chicago and the panel moderator.

Health care is healthy: Health care is now “laser-focused” on real estate. Site selection in the future, says one panelist, will cater to two distinct groups - people under age 50 and those older than 50

Cyber fight: Office properties are particularly vulnerable breaches. “If a hacker can get into a building's unsecured printers, he can overheat them, start a fire and set off your sprinkler system,” says panelist George Hickey III, former IT director at Newmark Grubb Knight Frank. 

Be social: A panel on social media argued that the time and investment is worth it. “The new model is to build a web of places people can find you,” says Rachel Cogar, CEO of Charlotte-based Puma Creative. “It's important to be authentic and to share relevant content as a way to differentiate yourself and your company — effective social media is not about self-promotion.”