Market Research

Gruen Gruen + Associates has developed behavioral concepts about consumer motivations and matched them to an array of analytical methods, creating an arsenal of powerful consumer research tools. This enables GG+A to extract the most relevant information from an exploding base of computer-accessible demographic, socio-economic, and real estate data. Expertise in a broad variety of survey and interview techniques enables GG+A to conduct or supervise cost-effective field research.

Gruen Gruen + Associates has been a leader in the use of combinations of survey research and demographic analysis and economic analysis to identifying and forecasting demands. Improvements we have made in marketing research have been particularly effective in accurately predicting the demand for innovative real estate products and location-enhancing programs and transit modes. We frequently identify localized shifts in demography, the economic structure and comparative advantages of relevant markets, shifting consumer or user preferences, new or expanded transportation linkages, and the creation of new agglomeration of uses and activities.

Real Estate Economics & Investment Evaluation

Gruen Gruen + Associates has developed a series of conceptual models that describe how alternative market conditions influence profitable land use. The success of all real estate projects depends on local supply and demand conditions. Good real estate deals can happen in robust and depressed regional economies – as can bad real estate deals. GG+A’s models enable us to examine the real estate economics that apply to a specific area and then accurately forecast the results of alternative development, public investment, or regulatory actions.

GG+A began developing our real estate cash flow model REALISM in 1970. While preserving its proprietary features, we have constantly enhanced and refined REALISM through hundreds of development programming, deal-making, and negotiating situations. Today, our unique investment simulation tools permit us to comprehensively and accurately estimate supportable land values, acquisition prices, and returns. We provide in depth investment analysis for a wide scale and mix of land development, reuse, and re-positioning programs under varying regulatory and market conditions. Our investment analysis points to higher returns and exposes value-deflating risks.

Fiscal & Economic Impact Analysis

The economists and market analysts at GG+A know well the proper use of regional economic analysis and fiscal impact modeling. They also understand the inherent limitations of analytic techniques when they are used to select strategic economic development policies or evaluate specific public or private investments. What GG+A brings to analysis are credible answers that produce results – not the output of a black box to be taken on faith, but rational and understandable explanations of expected effects on jobs, incomes, and public treasuries.

Strategic Planning for Development, Redevelopment & Revitalization

GG+A combines comprehensive research capabilities, sophisticated analytical tools, and transactional and implementation expertise and experience to provide strategic planning for land and community development, property redevelopment, adaptive reuse and repositioning and revitalization of downtowns and commercial corridors.

We synthesize market and industry analysis, investment feasibility analysis and economic and fiscal impact analysis to identify and evaluate:

• Market demand and development opportunities
• Pitfalls to avoid
• The ramifications of alternatives
• Execution risks and mitigations to those risks
• Transaction structures and
• Strategic policy and implementation actions that stand the test of time and leverage existing and create new sustainable competitive advantages.

Economic Development Strategy

Places are like people; no two are really the same. Differences in local history, social culture, market dynamics, and politics assure that no single cookie cutter policy or program can best achieve all economic or redevelopment goals. We assess the economic bases and prepare economic development plans for communities and regions using state-of-the art analytical tools. We apply the concepts of the social sciences, statistics, and econometrics to produce clear, accurate and objective forecasts and descriptions of the relevant areas, the real estate economics that apply and the demands that can be catered to in the future. We forecast the growth and change of communities and regions and analyze the market and policy implications of that growth and change.

Survey research, focus panels, and demographic and employment base analysis have been frequently used by GG+A teams identifying redevelopment, modernization, and other strategic actions to improve the competitive strength of existing industrial and business parks and commercial corridors. We have frequently used our understanding of changes in technology, demographic and consumer shopping patterns to assist shopping center owners, developers, and asset managers to make the type of physical and re-tenanting changes that improve their competitive position and enhance returns on investment.

Land Value Enhancement & Disposition

Since its founding in 1970 Gruen Gruen + Associates has worked with land owners and public entities that regulate land use to identify market responsive plans that maximize land values and private and public returns from development and redevelopment. The market research and real estate financial analysis Gruen Gruen + Associates conducts results in land use plans and development programs in which the whole of the development guided by the plans equals more than the sum of the individual parts. Our pre-development services for land owners go beyond identifying the general plan and uses of land value maximizing plans. We position the land and help effectively market it to the developers, builders, or users whose unique capabilities can best implement the land value maximizing identified development.

Real Estate Asset Management & Implementation

The market analysts and real estate economists of Gruen Gruen + Associates have extensive experience identifying and evaluating the net revenue and costs likely to flow over time from alternative land and real property options. We frequently apply these skills to work with land owners, developers and space users to identify asset management and occupancy programs and implement real estate decisions that maximize returns from real estate assets and minimize net occupancy costs.

We often apply these skills to public and non profit entities such as transit agencies, school districts, local, county, and state governments, airports and museums, universities, and hospitals, motivated to generate the greatest revenue potential from their real estate assets while simultaneously minimizing the net cost of facilities they need to serve their public purpose. GG+A works closely with public and non profit clients to evaluate, structure, negotiate and implement plans and transactions to create and maximize value from their land and real estate holdings.

Litigation Support

As part of our economic, sociological and financial research practice, Gruen Gruen + Associates has accrued extensive experience in litigation support and consulting for attorneys and their clients. Since 1970, we have been conducting research and providing expert testimony for a diverse base of public and private clients. Examples of litigation support cases include dispute resolution, damage estimation, identification of fee and land use policy impacts, entitlements and condemnation.