ADVERTISEMENT LIFESTYLE RENTERS, HOUSING AFFORDABILITY HELP DRIVE SUBURBAN CHICAGO MULTIFAMILY DEVELOPMENT Demand for multifamily con-tinues to be strong in the Chicago suburbs, and trends suggest this healthy demand will continue. With a nationwide shortage of housing, high interest rates and in-creasing single-family home prices, renting is more economical and at-tractive for many consumers. New-mark reported a record-breaking Paul 198,806 apartment units delivered nationwide in the rst half of 2023, Robertson with deliveries projected to in-The Opus Group crease 51.1 percent year-over-year. Housing affordability Millennials and Gen Xers are in their prime apart-ment years and staying in rental housing longer due to housing affordability. They are also looking for in town, highly amenitized, transit-oriented de-velopments that offer the lifestyles they seek. The suburban developments meeting these criteria are in high demand. A recent CBRE report on Chicago suburban multifamily showed that 1,192 units were under construction in the rst half of 2023, versus a 2,217-unit annual average. The development of Dash Downers Grove by Opus is a case in point. This seven-story, 167-unit project is in the Village of Downers Grove, a west-ern suburb of Chicago in the DuPage County sub-market. It offers convenient access to restaurants, shops, parks and the rail station. The CBRE report notes that the DuPage submarket has delivered the highest number of suburban multifamily units and projects in suburban Chicago in the past 10 years. Densi cation Many leaders in suburban Chicago communities understand the bene t of residents living in their downtowns and contributing to their economic vital-ity — often without increasing traf c congestion or parking concerns. According to CBRE, Class A prod-uct in the Chicago suburbs is averaging 96.1 percent occupancy. And with luxury offerings, residents of-ten have discretionary income to support businesses. Densi cation of suburban downtowns is a trend that will likely continue in the Chicago market. Those areas where suburban leaders have embraced new multifamily have momentum, and are now bene ting from second, third and fourth develop-ments. Developing multifamily in mature markets like Downers Grove can be challenging. They typi-cally lack shovel-ready sites, so assembling a site of any size requires persistence and creativity. For Dash, we worked with local property owners and First Baptist Church, which has been in the village for more than 170 years. The sale of a parking lot provided the church with needed capital during the pandemic. We incorporated 71 reserved spaces for church use in the new parking structure so that they didn’t lose parking. Lifestyle driven Opus takes time to identify suburban markets that have a thriving downtown and potential suit-able sites. A key criterion is connectivity to lifestyle elements that our residents seek — with walkability to those things that they value, and at the same time giving them all the amenities inside the building that make them happy day-to-day. Dash features work-from-home suites, a clubroom with a full kitchen and gaming areas, a state-of-the-art tness center, a pet spa and an outdoor dog run, a conference room and a coffee bar. An outdoor pool on the third level includes pool-side cabanas, a grilling area and outdoor kitchen, seating areas and repits. It also features “smart apartment” technology offer-ing residents fully connected smart-home experi-ences controlled from an app. They can control door locking, temperature, appliances, outlets and more — from anywhere inside or outside the building. Sustainability is also important to renters. At Opus, we consider environmental impacts in our design and construction process. Dash Downers Grove has earned both Fitwel certi cation and Na-tional Green Building Standard certi cation. Potential shortage ahead Despite the strong growth of suburban Chicago multifamily, the current state of capital markets has led to a more recent depressed level of development and construction activity. That will translate to a shortage of new apartment housing in two years, given the construction cycle. And that shortage will result in an upward pressure on rents. Mature suburban markets in Chicago will likely continue to bene t from lifestyle renters who are choosing the amenities and convenience they seek within walking distance from their apartment homes. Paul Robertson is senior director of real estate for Opus. DASH DOWNERS GROVE DOWNERS GROVE, IL INTEGRATED TEAM INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS INSPIRED RESULTS opus-group.com For leasing information, visit dashdownersgrove.com 20 • December 2023 • Heartland Real Estate Business
Heartland Real Estate Business December 2023: Page 20
