Megacities are the New Economic and Real Estate Centers

While urban areas of the world continue growing, traditional borders are evolving in order to make way for new spaces and eco-systems in large cities and new economic and socially-significant centers. The growth of connected urban areas is reshaping the urban world map, and many times it places the city at the vital economic center in lieu of the state. MIPIM 2018, which take place in Cannes from March 13-16, is a mosaic of opportunities for public and private investors in these megacities, which are being reshaped.

Technology, demographic challenges, climate change or new social values, more inclined towards collaboration are totally redefining everything, from the cities in which we live to the concept of the company where we work. And all that has a direct impact on the real estate sector, that is rising from its ashes with the added challenge of having to adapt itself to this entire revolution without once again stumbling on the excesses of the past.

This situation motivates public and private investors to explore life in cities in the future at a global level as the role of local authorities and the creation of new city models evolve. For a real estate professional, the path to maximizing revenue is to reach the appropriate equilibrium between a global vision and a local strategy that takes into account local idiosyncrasies. Madrid and Barcelona are traditional participants together with Malaga, which this year is doubling its efforts.

The Malaga Municipal Government is attending MIPIM under the umbrella of the Spanish Cluster, which also combines the presence of other institutions such as the Community of Madrid and ICEX, while Barcelona attends separately, using as a letter of introduction. The book Malaga: The Transformed City, in which the reader may visually discover the main characteristics and values that the capital offers and which has led to it being considered one of the most attractive cities in which to invest.

Novelties

In addition, this year MIPIM, organized by Reed Midem, a subsidiary of Reed Exhibitions, includes three new events: The African Forum, the Regulation and Legal Forum, and the PropTech Laboratory. With the aim of being a pre-cursor of new trends, these new directed events will respond to the needs of different segments of the real estate industry and provide new commercial opportunities and networks to those in attendance.

“Africa the Effect of Urbanization” will explore how investors may foresee the scale and nature of the real estate demand in such a diverse continent, which will account for half of the increase of the world population in 2050. Speakers include Frederic Maury, Editing director Jenue Afrique; Richard Barnes, Barnes Media International; Yomi Ademola, director of Western Africa, Rendeavour; Nicolas Willemin, senior manager of Investments, Proparco and Eduardo López Moreno, director of Research and Development of Skills at UN-Habitat.

The second session of the panel: “Africa: Key Success Factors” will address the issue of how urbanization may be developed without industrialization. What are the key factors for success? Speakers include Duncan Vink, general manager UFF African Agri Investments-CDP; Namasivayen Poonoosamy, general manager of the Investment Board of Mauricio; Nick Langford, chief of Denia Rendeavour and Cris Igwe, founder of Chris Igwe International.

MIPIM has a tradition of creating exhibition areas and forums dedicated to specific segments that kicked off with hotels and tourism, the MIPIM Innovation Forum, the Asia Conference and the popular conference, MIPIM RE-Invest. The expansion continues with this year’s edition which is to include a Legal and Regulation Forum behind closed doors (March 13 at 2:00 p.m.) where lawyers, attorneys and jurists will discuss how the European framework and the national legislation affect the real estate industry. Wallis Goelen-Vandebrock, head of the Unit for Inclusive Development, Urban and Territorial Development of the General Directorate of the Regional and Urban Policy of the European Commission, will open the forum on the new European directives that will have an impact on the real estate sector.

Also new this year, PropTech Lab will be a supplementary event for the exhibition space, MIPIM Innovation Forum, which presents technology companies to the RE community. PropTechLab takes place on March 15 at 4:30 p.m. and it is a closed-door event that will bring together those in charge of taking RE and Tech decisions in a round-table format, in order to analyze the evolution and the growth of the PropTech industry. After having launched MIPIM PropTech in New York last year, MIPIM is organizing the first MIPIM PropTech Europe, programmed for June in Paris. The new event will bring together key property decision-makers with new companies and tech companies.

“Not only is MIPIM the meeting point for the international real estate industry each year, but also an opportunity for those real estate professionals who share strategies and areas of interest to speak to one another and exchange ideas. It is for that reason that we have created new meeting events at MIPIM which will further meet the growing needs of our clients”, explains Ronan Vaspart, director of MIPIM.

Large Projects

During the 2018 MIPIM the principal international projects are going to be exhibited and which represent all the segments of the business: offices, residences, hotels and tourism, commercial, industrial and logistics among others. Among the projects to highlight are a residential complex in Milan from the 60s in an intelligent urban ecosystem, an ultra-luxurious mix, a development with a unique architecture located in Kenya and the Mui Dinh Eco Park on the eastern coast of Vietnam, a mixed-use development.

The Shinagawa development project of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) will provide a new railway station near the Shinagawa station; the inauguration of which is projected for 2020. Shinagawa has a rapid access to the Haneda airport and Shinkansen Station and with the collaboration of communities plans to create an attractive international city.

Insofar as Spain, we have as an example the Canalejas Project, right in the historical and shopping center of Madrid or the Madrid macro-operation, Madrid New North (also known as the North Castellana District or Operation Chamartin). In this regard, Teresa Olszweski, director of Marketing and Communication of the Canalejas Project emphasizes the key role of large projects such as that of Canalejas in order to boost investment in large cities. “We have been the catalyst of many investments that have been made since 2010 in the zone; we calculate around 1.2 billion euros”, explains.

We also highlight the Diagonal-Besòs Campus, the new location of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)-Barcelona Tech, currently with 3,500 students and 500 researchers in sustainable engineering. The area covers 148.266 square meters, of land that can be developed in the northern zone of Barcelona and is being transformed into the home of universities, research institutes and innovative companies. This campus continues affording unique investment opportunities to private developers. After the commencement of the construction of the student residence last year (opening 2019) an offer was launched for a shared office/work space of 7.300 square meters in a quality urban area along the Mediterranean sea-front of Barcelona.

Spanish Conference 2018: Investment and New Developments in Large Spanish Cities

On March 15 at 12:30 p.m., the key figures of the real estate sector have an appointment at the Spanish Conference, the principal event of the Spanish market that will be held at MIPIM 2018. At this edition, the meeting will focus on investment and new development in large Spanish cities and the opportunities and challenges that they provide. Aspects that make Spain a benchmark country for international investors will be addressed.

The keynote speaker at the session will be José Carlos García de Quevedo, general director at Invest in Spain ICEX. The debate table will include (Moderator) Roger Pla, associate at Roca Junyent; Sandra Daza, general director at Gesvalt; Hermann F. Montenegro, CEO AXA RE; Pere Viñolas, CEO Colonial; Jordán Guardo Vázquez, Bilbao City Hall (Isla Zorrotzaurre) and Francisco de la Torre, major Malaga CityHall (Térmica).

It was precisely at an event held in Madrid entitled “Spain at Mipim 2018: New challenges in Large Cities for the New Decade” organized by Círculo Inmobiliario Meridiana together with Gesvalt and Roca Junyent, that debate centered on the growing role of cities in the real estate sector as well as the importance of fairs such as MIPIM, in order to boost the economy.

At the forum, Luis Martín Guirado, director of Business Development at Gesvalt, described the growing impact and importance of PropTech in all real estate sectors. Roger Pla, partner of Roca Junyent, in line with the central theme of the trade fair, confirmed that “cities will be the key players in real estate in the near future”.

Luis Martin Guirado spoke in greater detail about the relationship of the role of cities as the focus of international investment in 2018. “We have observed a second wave of growth that has focused on Valencia and Alicante, but also on cities such as Seville, A Coruña or Zaragoza that are going to be the focus of investment interest with regard to all types of assets this year. Consequently, over-analyzed cities, such as Madrid and Barcelona, are going to continue, however foreign investors are going to need more than ever professional advice in markets where knowledge is not so accessible, in order to understand the investment drivers.

Más información sobre MIPIM 2018 en la revista online