Where the artists go, higher property values may follow
South Florida is a region with artistic lifeblood pumping through its veins. From Wynwood and Little Haiti in Miami to FAT Village in Fort Lauderdale, creativity has lifted neighborhoods, boosted economic vitality, and changed lives. Mural art has long been a fixture of area communities, on both public and privately-owned buildings. This trend, once seen as a harbinger of neighborhood decay, has in recent years become a beacon for economic vitality and community engagement.
Real estate in particular has seen this trend as a great boon to property values, and a great advertisement for the communities themselves.
The art/commerce connection
Although developers and landlords had been talking up this trend for years, it wasn’t until 2016 that researchers in the U.K. used Flickr to prove the connection between public art and property values. Up until then, there wasn’t a reliable method of getting a tally of the amount of art in a specific area. They used the social media platform’s image tags and location data to track the locations of photos labeled “art” from London neighborhoods taken from 2004 and 2013. Each photo was coded with a geotag, providing authentic geographic information. They then overlaid residential property prices and watched them shift over those nine years.
The results matched the anecdotes that real estate professionals had been mentioning for years – neighborhoods with a higher concentration of art saw prices rise more than those with little or no art.
Creating community
A city with an abundance of art brings with it a sense of joy, pride, and fun. It takes blank walls and turns them vibrant, making the building and surrounding neighborhood a place far more livable and walkable. A structure that was simply a building with a corporate function – a bank, drug store, or insurance office – can become a local landmark, something that people travel to see, and want to live near.
With ecommerce taking a huge bite of the retail industry, local businesses have to create new reasons for people to unplug, put on their sneakers, and walk into their stores. Mural art can signal to potential customers that excitement and value live within a business’s walls.
Driving business
Public mural art has come a long way. From its radical roots as a form of vandalism-inspired protest to its current place of honor in museums, galleries, and at economic development board meetings, it is now recognized as a valuable part of urban and suburban centers. Art’s role as a brand ambassador has also been solidified, with corporate behemoths from Coca-Cola to Nike sponsoring advertisements in the form of original murals.
The funnel of art to dollars runs a fairly simple path: high-quality neighborhood art shows improvement in the area and attracts more artists. Funky, independent businesses follow, such as cafes, restaurants, and local retailers. Young, hip (and often newly-moneyed) professionals want to live where the action is and put down their own stakes. Realtors see the shift and raise prices accordingly.
One of Miami’s newest properties may very well be ground zero for this trend. Canvas Miami, a 37-foot tower with 513 condos in the heart of the city’s Arts and Entertainment District, was designed to be a literal work of art. Topping out at $630,000 per unit, the space boasts work ranging from freestyle to interactive chalkboard art. Amenities include pool decks, a yoga garden, squash fields, and a playroom for kids.
The team at Morris Southeast Group wholeheartedly supports the use of art to fundamentally improve the neighborhoods and larger economy of South Florida. For a free consultation or to learn more about our property investment opportunities and/or other services, call us at 954.474.1776. You can also reach Ken Morris directly at 954.240.4400 or via email at kenmorris@morrissegroup.com.
