Investment Strategy > MacFarlane Partners

Investment Strategy

“I'm honored to lead the next generation of growth, innovation, and impact at MacFarlane Partners. The challenge to scale and expand the national investment management platform that Victor has built over the past 35 years is an exciting opportunity for our leadership team, the investors we serve, and the communities and companies in which we invest.”

LANDON V. TAYLOR
CEO, MacFarlane Partners Investment Management Group

Urban/Smart Growth: The Opportunity

MacFarlane Partners looks to capitalize on the burgeoning smart-growth movement and other socioeconomic trends that favor higher-density, urban-style living over decentralized sprawl. Our investments are concentrated in U.S. “Gateway Cities” — leading U.S. metro areas with dynamic economies, favorable demographics, strong real estate fundamentals and vibrant cultural communities.

Seattle

The popularity of the urban lifestyle and the rise of smart-growth development are boosting space demand in urban areas and reshaping suburbs to make them more urban-like.
Shorter commutes and the allure of urban living are drawing young renters, older “empty nesters” and others back to central cities and other urban neighborhoods.
Urban neighborhoods mix residential and commercial land uses to create lively, walkable districts with a variety of shopping, dining and entertainment options – an experience that suburbs often have not provided.
Smart growth emphasizes efficient use of land and encourages redevelopment of underutilized infill sites, transit-oriented developments and high-density, master-planned communities.
Smart growth is key to accommodating future population increases while keeping communities livable – something that traditional suburban development is unlikely to achieve.
For investors, urban submarkets have higher barriers to entry and are less prone to overbuilding than lower-density areas.
Urban/smart-growth investments can produce a “triple bottom line” by providing community and environmental benefits that last well beyond the holding period for most investors.

We focus on top-tier U.S. metro areas with vibrant, knowledge-based economies and a strong export base that are attractive places to live, work and play.
These Gateway Cities are fertile ground for our investments, having reached a size where commutes, sprawl and related issues have spurred smart-growth efforts.
Gateway Cities are popular places to live, work and play, often featuring young, highly skilled work forces and the knowledge industries that employ them.
Gateway Cities have large inventories of institutional-grade properties and economies that generate sizeable tenant demand for commercial and residential space.
Gateway Cities top the list of real estate investors in the U.S. and abroad, facilitating multiple exit strategies and enhancing liquidity for property owners.
Within a Gateway City, we look for existing or emerging urban/suburban nodes that have high population densities and supply constraints to maximize asset performance.