Author : Wellness Communities & Real Estate Initiative Date : December 4, 2024

Wellness Communities & Real Estate Initiative

2024 Trends

TREND 1: WAI: Wellness as Infrastructure 

The next evolution in wellness real estate is embracing wellness as essential infrastructure, not as “amenities” to be added, but as elements that are at the core – from country, state, city, town, district, neighborhood, building and dwelling scale. This includes designing roads and transportation systems to support human-scale mobility and connectivity, designing and constructing healthier built environments that minimize carbon impacts and costs of servicing, prioritizing mental and physical health with accessible green space, intentional programming and activation. The impact of this trend can be quantified through improved public health and community longevity metrics, increased property values, community resilience. 

Sources: 

  • “La Ville du Quart d’Heure: Naissance d’une Urbanité des Temps Courts” por Carlos Moreno. (2022, Editions de l’Observatoire)  
  • “Wellness-Oriented Urban Planning: Concepts, Tools, and Case Studies” by Stephanie Rousseau and Thomas G. Reiner. (2023, Routledge)  
  • “Urban Health: New Directions in Research and Practice” edited by Jason Corburn and Lee Riley. (2022, Oxford University Press)  

TREND 2: WAAS: Wellness as a Service in Residential Communities, Commercial and Civic Spaces. 

There is a greater emphasis on developing projects that facilitate community wellness, transforming spaces into ecosystems that actively support the design, programming and operations of holistic, enduring well-being. This can range from fitness and nutrition coaching to mental health support and medical consultation services, available on-site or augmented and measurable through digital community platforms. This trend not only differentiates projects and improves their respective performance but also adds accretive value and responds to the growing demand for wellness-oriented lifestyles, potentially reducing healthcare costs and improving overall quality of life. This includes developing pathways that encourage social interaction, support for accessible aging in place, and access to attainable wellness resources for all residents. Projects will be evaluated on their ability to maintain or improve social cohesion, reduce loneliness, and support diverse community needs, with impacts measured through social well-being surveys, community health outcomes and economic impact.

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TREND 3: WROI: Wellness Return on Investment: Tangible and Meaningful Measurables

Responding to a heightened awareness and demand for places, and wellness experiences to support greater wellbeing, developers, operators and investors are placing a growing emphasis on the economic and other performance aspects of wellness real estate; such as ROI, NOI, IRR, enhanced hotel revenue, increased premiums, absorption pace and enhanced streams of revenue, and closely tracking these metrics. This contributes to healthcare cost savings, increases in happiness, productivity, retention of residents and employees, and tangible increases in sales prices, rent premiums and overall absorptions. The trend is driven by a demand for evidence-based benefits, encouraging more health-focused design and technology investments. 

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TREND 4: WRELE: Wellness Real Estate and Longevity Economy

Longevity is becoming a significant focus, driven by an aging population and a shift towards self-care before healthcare. The real estate sector is uniquely positioned to adapt and thrive by integrating longevity-focused design and services into projects from the ground up. This trend involves developing properties that facilitate longer, healthier lives and improve the quality of life through space design, health-focused programming, and designing communities to encourage physical activity and social interaction among aging populations. It can also include integrating personalized health plans based on genetic and biomarker testing and the rise of longevity clinics in communities, offering advanced diagnostic testing and treatments. This “economy” is not just about living longer but improving the overall quality of life, with potential impacts on healthcare systems and societal views on aging.  

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TREND 5: WRLN: Wellness Real Estate Leverages Nature More than Ever

A renewed appreciation for and deeper understanding of the power of nature to support wellness – physical, social and emotional – began during the pandemic and continues to build. There is a growing interest in incorporating more parks at all scales, natural outdoor recreation areas, more intentional landscaping, and public green spaces into real estate projects and communities. Additionally, more equitable distribution of and equitable access to these natural assets for traditionally underserved populations is gaining greater focus, distributing the investment of natural spaces more evenly throughout new communities and with greater effort to include them in project renovations for the benefit of all.  

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