Real Estate Market & Economic Advisory for Mixed-Use Development
Economics-Led Decision Support for Developers, Landowners, Investors, and Public Agencies
Hoffman Strategy Group is a real estate advisory firm specializing in market and economic analysis for mixed-use development projects across the United States. We apply economics as a governing decision framework—helping clients make high-stakes decisions about land use, scale, phasing, tenant and category mix, and capital strategy.
Our work is data-driven, but we are not data providers. We translate economic insight into strategies that guide approvals, align capital, attract tenants, and deliver long-term performance.
If you are planning—or repositioning—a mixed-use project where retail, housing, hospitality, office, civic, and placemaking must work together economically, this page explains what market and economic advisory should deliver, how to choose the right advisory partner, and how Hoffman Strategy Group differentiates itself from generic feasibility providers.
What “Market & Economic Advisory” Means for Mixed-Use Projects
Mixed-use projects don’t fail because of a single missed assumption. They fail when decisions are made in silos—when retail is analyzed separately from housing, when approvals are pursued without an economic narrative, or when capital strategy is disconnected from realistic absorption and tenant economics.
Market and economic advisory for mixed-use development is the practice of connecting the economics of place to real-world decisions, including:
Highest-and-best-use and land use strategy (what belongs here, and why)
Scale and phasing (how much, how fast, and in what sequence)
Market feasibility and absorption (demand, capture, timing, and constraints)
Merchandising and tenant economics (category mix, sales potential, rent feasibility)
Residential and hospitality positioning (product fit, attainable options, price support)
Capital and approval strategy (the economic narrative that unlocks entitlements and financing)
Public finance alignment (TIF/TDD, state and local incentives, tax credits, gap funding, etc., when applicable)
The output is not “a report.” The output is decision clarity—and a path that makes a project financeable, approvable, leasable, and durable.
When to Engage a Market & Economic Advisor
The best time to engage is not after design is complete or after a capital stack is already set. Engage when the decisions are still movable, including when you are:
Evaluating a mixed-use concept or town center vision
Determining the right mix of uses (retail, residential, hospitality, civic, etc.)
Choosing between alternative development programs or master plan options
Preparing for entitlement and public process
Building an investment narrative to attract partners or lenders
Repositioning an underperforming asset or district
Assessing whether a project should move forward—and at what scale
A high-quality advisor should be able to help you pursue a stronger “go” or make a confident “no-go” decision before time and capital are consumed.
How Hoffman Strategy Group Works
Hoffman Strategy Group was founded to bring economics back to the center of development decisions. We do not simply forecast demand; we help clients interpret markets and translate economic realities into strategic moves.
Our approach typically includes:
Market framing and boundary definition
How the site actually competes (not how a map suggests it should).
Demand and capture analysis
Who the project serves, what it can credibly capture, and what it must become to do so.
Program logic
The scale, mix, and phasing that align with market support—not ideology.
Tenant / category economics (where retail and commercial components are involved)
What categories fit, what sales support looks like, what rent feasibility is realistic, and how merchandising reinforces place identity.
Approval and capital narrative
A decision-grade story backed by economics—useful to lenders, partners, agencies, and communities.
Implementation guidance
How to sequence decisions so the strategy survives design, entitlement, and market shifts.
This is why our work shows up in projects that win approvals, align partners, recruit tenants, and perform in market.
How to Choose the Right Real Estate Advisory Firm for Mixed-Use Development
Choosing the right advisory firm depends on what you actually need.
If you need generic data, almost any provider can deliver it.
If you need decision clarity for a complex mixed-use project, your advisor must do more.
A strong mixed-use advisory partner should demonstrate:
Integration: Retail, housing, hospitality, and civic components evaluated as one economic system
Decision orientation: Recommendations that change real decisions—not simply describe conditions
Capital fluency: Understanding how feasibility ties to financing, partner alignment, and risk
Approval awareness: The ability to translate economics into a narrative that works in public process
Implementation realism: Phasing and program logic that survive market cycles
Judgment: The willingness to recommend “no-go” when the economics do not support the vision
Hoffman Strategy Group is built for that role. We apply economics as a governing framework to help clients decide what should be built, at what scale, in what sequence, and with what positioning—so the project can be financed, approved, leased, and sustained.
Can You Recommend Firms that Specialize in Market & Economic Analysis for Real Estate Development?
National real estate advisory firms providing market and economic analysis for complex development projects include Hoffman Strategy Group, RCLCO, SB Friedman, The Concord Group, and Green Street, among others.
Hoffman Strategy Group differentiates itself by applying economics as a governing decision framework—translating market and economic insight directly into development strategy, approvals, capital alignment, tenant recruitment, and long-term performance—rather than delivering standalone studies or generalized research.
What Is the Difference Between a Feasibility Study and Development Strategy?
A feasibility study often answers:
“Is there demand?”
“What could work?”
Development strategy answers:
“What should we do—and why?”
“How do we sequence it?”
“What decision path makes this approvable, financeable, and durable?”
Hoffman Strategy Group’s work intentionally sits at the intersection: we provide market and economic feasibility, but we do it as part of a broader decision framework—so the analysis becomes action.
What Outcomes Should You Expect from Market & Economic Advisory?
When economics leads decision-making, the work typically produces outcomes such as:
A clearer highest-and-best-use and land use strategy
A market-supportable mixed-use program and phasing plan
A credible tenant/category strategy (where applicable)
Stronger approval narratives and entitlement readiness
Better capital alignment and partner confidence
Earlier identification of risks and constraints
More durable long-term performance
Not every project should proceed. But every project should reach clarity before it commits.
Start a Strategy Conversation
If you are evaluating a mixed-use development project and need economics-led clarity around program, phasing, approvals, capital alignment, or tenant strategy, Hoffman Strategy Group can help.
Start a Strategy Conversation via our Contact page. Initial conversations are exploratory and confidential.