Economy / Market Analysis
Recent Features
Speed Built In—The Real Differentiator for 2026 Site Selection Projects
After a year where “shovel ready” often unraveled under scrutiny, the forward play is fewer unknowns and faster paths to operation—because constraints decide the field before incentives do.
Strategic Industries at the Crossroads: Defense, Aerospace, and Maritime Enter 2026
As industrial policy accelerated, the gap between ambition and execution widened: supply chain security, workforce clearance, and infrastructure bottlenecks revealed the unforgiving realities of building strategic industries at home.
Leading Metro Locations 2025: Smaller Markets, Stronger Momentum
Smaller and mid-sized U.S. metros are outpacing big cities, leveraging workforce agility, affordability, and livability to redefine competitiveness and attract investment in 2025.
Data Centers in 2025: When Power Became the Gatekeeper
The era of easy expansion is over—success now depends on early alignment among utilities, governments, and capital.
Too Much of a Good Thing: Can Overbuilt Spec Development Benefit Manufacturers?
Power supply, infrastructure, and specs often fall short for manufacturers eyeing overbuilt logistics sites.
2025’s Top States for Business: How the Winners Are Outpacing the Rest
Speed, workforce alignment, and energy infrastructure now define the best states for doing business — not just incentives or tax breaks. Our exclusive rankings break down how the top performers are staying ahead in a tightening market.
Why Cold Storage May Defy the Tariff Crunch
Food related projects remain resilient as tariff pressures shake other sectors of commercial real estate
39th Annual Corporate & 21st Annual Consultants Surveys: What Business Leaders and Consultants Are Saying About Site Selection
The findings from Area Development’s annual surveys provide a comprehensive look at how decision-makers are navigating the current landscape and what factors are shaping their investment plans.
NEW NIMBYism: A Threat to The U.S. Economy
[There is a] false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’ - Isaac Asimov
2024's Leading Metro Locations: U.S. Cities on the Rise Amid an Economic Reshuffling
Area Development’s 2024 Leading Metro Locations report reveals shifting dynamics in America’s cities.
Top States for Doing Business in 2024: A Continued Legacy of Excellence
Certain states just have the right ingredients for attracting and nurturing business growth. The 2024 Top States for Doing Business rankings are in, and guess what? The Southern states are shining bright once again.
The Critical Role of Real Estate in Site Selection Projects
Strategically selecting sites that optimize economic, logistical, and sustainability factors, not only enhances operational efficiency but also secures a robust foundation for future growth and success.
Life Sciences Companies Need an Innovation Hub to Thrive
Cities, research institutions, and commercial real estate firms are partnering to develop special districts to innovate for the future.
38th Annual Corporate Survey: Are Unrealized Predictions of an Economic Slump Leading Small to Mid-Size Companies to Put Off Expansion Plans?
Small and mid-size firms — which account for most of our Corporate Survey respondents — are holding their plans for new and expanded facilities in check despite economic news being better than what had been predicted.
20th Annual Consultants Survey: Clients Prioritize Access to Skilled Labor, Responsive State & Local Government
The responding consultants say economic pressures are creating the biggest potential impact for their clients’ location and expansion plans, with finding available skilled labor being the most important concern.
2023's Leading Metro Locations: Hotspots of Economic Growth
The leading metro areas are those poised for long-term growth and are often hubs of high-tech industry, where workers may benefit from an affordable cost of living.
2023 Top States for Doing Business Meet the Needs of Site Selectors
The states considered the best locations for doing business according to an expert panel of location consultants are the highest performers in more than a dozen categories upon which companies make their site selection decisions.
The Rise of Mid-Size U.S. Cities: The Industrial Development Boom
As company needs have evolved, many are gravitating to smaller urban areas that often provide them with a lower tax burden, affordable real estate, and development-ready sites.
19th Annual Consultants Survey: Clients Challenged by Tight Labor Market, Energy Availability
Consultants responding to our survey say economic conditions are affecting their clients’ expansion/investment plans, with labor and energy availability and costs of prime concern.
37th Annual Corporate Survey: Economic Pressures Exerting Greatest Effect on Decision-Makers
Companies looking to grow are facing an historically tight labor market and rising costs, but their plans to invest may be buoyed by recent government legislation.
Innovation Corridors Update
From robotics to EVs, from semiconductors to the life sciences, metro and regional hubs of innovation are advancing economic development across the nation.
36th Annual Corporate Survey: Executives Focus on Labor, Energy, Shipping Costs
A tight labor market, supply chain challenges, and rising costs have resulted in some surprising changes in corporate respondents’ location priorities.
18th Annual Consultants Survey: Access to Major Markets and Skilled Labor Are Clients’ Primary Concerns
Supply chain considerations, the shortage of skilled workers, and a lack of industrial space are top of mind for their clients, according to consultants responding to our annual survey.
Editor's Note: The Year Site Selection Grew Up
Energy availability takes center stage as companies compete for grid capacity and rethink growth strategies
Editor’s Note: Making Sense of the Shifts
If you’re reading this magazine, you’re likely grappling with questions that don’t have easy answers: Where will the next constraint show up? What will this election cycle do to capital flows? How do you build resilience without losing speed?
Editor’s Note: The Future Is Now
Skilled Labor, Ample Energy, and Speed to Market Take Priority
A location’s labor availability; responsive, pro-business local partners; and ability to support a large energy user are often the main drivers of the site selection decision.
Site Selection Evolves
Corporate respondents prioritize workforce talent, environmental factors, and permitting/regulatory ease in their location and expansion decisions.
Manufacturing Projects Dominate the Deal Flow
The volume of manufacturing projects across the nation is rising, while office activity has been slow to recover from the pandemic.
Consultants Survey Reflects Shift in Ranking of Site Selection Factors
A responsive state and local government, incentives offerings, and site readiness now outweigh costs in the location decision.
Companies Are Recalibrating Their Priorities
In recent years many companies have been propelled to recalibrate priorities for their location strategies and resulting real estate footprints. The top site selection factors for occupiers today include the following:
Federal Legislation Affects Companies’ Investment Plans
Companies looking to grow are facing an historically tight labor market and rising costs, but their plans to invest may be buoyed by recent government legislation.
Corporate Decision-Makers Face a Challenging Environment
The rankings clearly reflect the impact of geopolitical and economic instability, as well as technology.
Labor Related Factors Are Key
Companies are searching for the right balance of labor — at all skill levels — that can satisfy their needs not only now but also into the future.
Energy Costs Come to the Forefront
The shift away from carbon-emitting fuels and the unexpected spikes in natural gas pricing in 2022 have made industrial customers increasingly sensitive to energy costs in their location decisions.
In Focus: Michigan Rises to the Competitive Challenge
As the competition heats up, the state is taking concrete steps to ensure Michigan maintains its advantage in attracting and retaining advanced technology companies.
