Around the country, investors are always looking for the next big opportunity in order to stay on top of the market. Here are Commercial Brokers Internationals’ predictions for investment locations in 2019.

1.       Los Angeles, California.

Always a hotbed of commercial and residential properties, Los Angeles has become more gentrified in recent years which is leading to more growth. The city also offers a great way for investors to gain more leverage with vacation rentals and short-term leases.

Based on the 2010 census data, Los Angeles had a density of 7,544.6 people per square mile (2,910/square kilometer). While it's the second most populous urban area, Los Angeles is the single most densely populated area in the United States.

2.       Colorado

Colorado’s population is growing. The state offers great office leases in an environment that is quickly attracting more startups in the tech industry.

Many states in the US have shown growth at every census, but Colorado's population is actually growing faster now than it did during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. The current growth is causing housing shortages and increased traffic as Denver and Colorado Springs try to address immigration.

Like most states across the US, the population of Colorado is growing, but the growth has been significant in past years. Increases between censuses of 30% are not uncommon, and if that trend continues, the numbers could comfortably exceed 6 million at the next census in 2020. Some estimates have placed the 2040 population as high as 7.8 million.

3.       Texas

Commercial real estate is a booming area in Texas due to increased job growth around the state.
Texas is central to the real estate industry in the south, including major metro locations like Dallas, Austin, and Fort Worth.

Unlike much of the United States of America, Texas’ growth is fairly constant and as such, it is far easier to predict than other parts of the country. The population of Texas in 2016 is now estimated at 27 million, and given its very high growth rate, it will be no surprise to see a substantial jump in the population at the next census.

4.       New York

As the recent Amazon headquarters in Queens will suggest, New York is fast becoming the new LA for large businesses who want to integrate their headquarters on the east coast. Due to the rich moving in large part to the Hamptons, private office and industrial space is also being looked at and acquired more steadily in West Village.

New York's growth is expected to continue to continue over the next few decades. By 2020, it is estimated that the current population of 19.795 million will increase by nearly a quarter-million, pushing the population over 20 million.

5.       Georgia

Similar to Los Angeles, Georgia is going through gentrification which makes many areas of the city up for grabs to investors. Unlike LA, the cost of living is relatively low making it the perfect spot to bet on for growth in the near future.

As for the present and the future, continued population growth is expected. Georgia continues to grow at greater than 1% per year, which makes it one of the faster growing states in the country (12th).

According to a projection released in 2010 by the state of Georgia, the population was expected to reach 14.7 million by 2030. These projections seem to contradict the US Census projections, and may have overstated the potential growth of the state.

6.       Charlotte

Thanks in part to the job economy’s growth in Charlotte, the city is in a great position to support increased office, retail, and industrial development. Both international and national brands and businesses have been moving to Charlotte recently and Commercial Brokers International doesn’t see this trend shifting anytime in 2019.

Charlotte is currently the third fastest-growing major U.S. city. If its population growth continues, Charlotte's population is set to surge from 4.7% from 2010 to 2030, growing from 1.87 million to about 2.74 million in just twenty years.

Much of the growth in the region is due to foreign immigration as well as return migration to the South for the lower cost of living.

7.       Portland

Portland is a place where people with wealth have moved more and more recently to settle down or escape the corporate atmosphere of Los Angeles or New York. Prime for expansion, Portland offers great opportunities at a lower cost in commercial real estate.

Portland's population grew more than 10% from 2000 and 2010, and population growth in the Portland metro area has outpaced the national average for the last decade. This trend is expected to continue for the decades. Since 2010 census, the population has grown an additional 8.3%.

A recent article in Forbes found that Portland is the 10th fastest growing metropolitan area in the United States with a stable growth rate of 1.8% per year. Portland also leads Oregon’s population growth with numbers declining in many rural and eastern areas in favor of the city.