Restore Chester County
Economic Action Steps — Real Estate
Real estate can include sales and renting of properties. COVID-19 has reduced demand for retail and office commercial development and created an increasingly competitive home buying market due to low lending rates and limited housing stock; however, there is increased demand for industrial properties. Like other office settings, workers who had the ability to telecommute adapted quickly to working from home, and business meetings, conferences, and seminars went online.
Current Real Estate Business Practices
The following practices are being implemented by various real estate businesses around the county and nation to address COVID-19-related disruptions. These practices may be helpful for real estate businesses not currently using them.
- Stagger shifts for office workers and utilize videoconferencing for client and staff meetings.
- Offer continued voluntary work-from-home options for employees.
- Provide employees with childcare voucher and connect them to available providers.
- Repurpose hotel rooms as remote work offices.
- Provide virtual property showings.
- Limit number of people participating in a property showing.
- Divide extra-large vacant spaces into smaller leasable units.
- Consider alternative uses in offices or retail spaces.
- Create flexible short-term lease options for vacant spaces.
- Add safety features such as touchless door handles to buildings.
Actions to Support the Real Estate Industry
The following actions by governments, economic development organizations, trade organizations, and others would provide support to the real estate industry during the current COVID-19 crisis.
- Provide technical assistance with social media/marketing, COVID-19 testing, and navigating federal assistance/tax policies.
- Facilitate a safety 'self-certification' program that features consistent branding and signage.
- Enhance business resources on government websites with toolkits and information on opening and operating safely.
- Continuously share information on where to obtain PPE.
To see recommendations for other industries, click on the industry link below:
