Changing the Playbook in Construction & Real Estate

Changing the Playbook in Construction & Real Estate

I gave a talk this week to a group called Beer + BS (B.S. stands for Building Science). The members are builders, contractors, and people who make things work in the real world. I love the concept. If more industries paired cold beer with honest conversations, we might solve problems faster.

The theme of my talk was simple: the way we build, and the way we develop real estate, is reaching a breaking point. Everything costs more. Materials are volatile. Labor is tight. Margins are thin. Buyers are squeezed. Affordability is no longer just a housing issue; it’s an economic and community issue. And at today’s costs, the math simply doesn’t work if we keep building the same way we have for decades.

Something has to give.

I believe the construction model changes first, and off-site construction methods such as modular, panelized systems, SIPs, and ICFs are no longer fringe ideas. They aren’t about being trendy or futuristic; they’re about solving real problems. These systems can reduce labor pressure, shorten timelines, minimize waste, improve energy performance, and create more predictable outcomes. And predictability is everything right now.

This doesn’t mean the trades disappear. Quite the opposite. These tools organize labor more efficiently so the skilled people we do have can produce more. Technology isn’t replacing builders; it’s stretching scarce labor further.

At the same time, consumer preferences are shifting. People want smaller, better-designed homes, not bigger and cheaper ones. They want lower energy bills, quieter interiors, and smarter layouts. They’re rediscovering duplexes, townhomes, and other forms of “missing middle” housing because affordability comes from density, not magic. And increasingly, location matters more than square footage.

Cities are responding as well. Across the country, they are rewriting zoning codes to allow smaller lots, accessory dwelling units, and mixed-use development because spread-out growth is expensive to maintain. Roads, pipes, and public infrastructure all cost money, and denser communities simply work better over time.

When you put all of this together, one conclusion becomes clear: the future of construction and real estate will be smaller, denser, faster, more efficient, and more factory-influenced. The winners will be those willing to adapt. The losers will be those convinced that the last forty years are a reliable blueprint for the next ten.

For builders, developers, and investors willing to lean into change, the opportunity ahead is enormous.

J. David Chapman is the chair of finance and professor of real estate at The University of Central Oklahoma (jchapman7@uco.edu).