Real Estate and Opportunities for Commercial Development: The interesting aspect of Andrew’s real estate career is that he was born and raised in Eastern Pennsylvania near Philadelphia (ask him if he grew up near Doylestown). While at Pitt Business, he started to see potential in Pittsburgh’s real estate market, which has led him to build a large portfolio of apartment buildings and commercial properties in the North Side, the South Hills, Moon Township (near the airport) and the West End (among others). Given what you know about local real estate in an area that you are familiar with, which specific neighborhoods would you target for your portfolio (i.e. what is the commercial potential?)
The neighborhood that I think has a lot of commercial potential in my hometown is an area called Brittany. This neighborhood has a lot of large, high quality houses. It is almost completely developed with only a few open lots left for building. These homes are fairly expensive, but with a new UPMC Hospital opening up a few miles from this neighborhood, I can see many health professionals being interested in the houses. Doctors would be willing to spend a lot of money for nice houses a convenient distance from their workplace.
The Social Impact of Real Estate: In addition to the commercial opportunities in the Pittsburgh real estate market, Andrew also emphasizes that real estate has tremendous potential to generate a positive social impact by supporting a stock of good quality apartments at affordable prices – with an emphasis on supporting financial literacy among his tenants. Based on the area you wrote about above, which neighborhoods that you know of could benefit from this combination of good quality apartments with reasonable rent (plus an attention to financial literacy)?
My hometown has a neighborhood called Hearthridge that is made up of hundreds of townhouses. These townhouses look minimal from the outside, but from the inside feel very homey and are complete with large kitchens, multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, and a basement or garage (depending on the specific unit). These townhouses are definitely good quality and they are available for reasonable prices to purchase and rent. If this neighborhood became even more affordable, people from the city, a less nice area of York, might be able to move to it and have a nicer living.
Other Examples Like This?: Based on your review of real estate as an area for opportunities in commercial development and social impact, how do you see real estate being relevant in the work you want to do in the future?
Real-estate is relevant to any workplace because location and facility are a huge part of moral and efficiency for company’s. If your business is in a good location, employees will be happier and business may be better. If the floor plan and quality of the facility is good, then work may be done faster and better.