The Future of Work and Commercial Real Estate

I am reading a real estate report for 2021/2022 and the focus so far is the future of the workplace.

Reading this takes me back to a moment over ten years ago. I was working on a project and had meetings with a group of companies. This required me to be on the move and there was a day in between where I was allowed to work at home. It was absolutely outstanding. I was energized and highly productive.

Most of the work at that time was reviewing drawing sets and making corrections. I remember thinking “this is great; there should be a way for the opportunity to work from home to happen more often.”

At the time I was living in Los Angeles and commuting to work for close to an hour one way. That equals ten hours a week in congested traffic. That is not the way to spend ones life. It is poor for the environment and poor for your health.

I also remarked to myself that this feeling of freedom must be what it feels like to work for yourself. Now that I have my own small business, I confirmed that feeling. I am so much more productive now. You can make decisions quickly, correct errors efficiently, and retain focus without unnecessary distractions. Owning a business and working from home also alleviates the politics stress so you can place your energies towards important matters, or find moments to relax and enjoy life.

Commercial real estate will never be the same. Companies can reduce their office lease overhead costs and reallocate spending into new programs to boost productivity.

This transition is similar to the contrasts between high school and college. In high school, there is a higher level of supervision and control which can be stifling. In college, the student is completely accountable. There is tremendous freedom in that arraignment and I found that liberation to equate to a significant increase in productivity, well being, and passion and engagement towards my work. It’s a great victory for company leaders that can relinquish the desire to oversee and control. It is a great victory for millions of workers nation wide.

Obviously, there are industries that will not be able to transition to a work from anywhere situation since some industries require a high level of interaction and coordination. The companies that can wield a great advantage.

so what happens to all the empty office space? That in itself can become a whole new industry sector. Building owners will see a need, or even be forced, to adapt to the market and retrofit their buildings to other functions like data center, light tech manufacturing, and housing.

Those transitions which will soon get underway will be a good way for an architect or contractor to find a niche to specialize in office conversions.

Time will tell how these new facets emerge. I am excited to see what occurs. Like most negative things, there is a positive outcome that can occur if we are observant, keep an open mind, and stay prepared to shift and change.