Mixed-use buildings are everywhere in urban landscapes. Cities all over the world sport these types of properties, and it’s easy to see why. The ability to pair storefronts that enhance the lifestyle of residents and tourists while providing for the residential needs of those in the community is a great addition to city skylines everywhere.

Simply put, a mixed-use building is one that matches corporate entities and residential spaces alongside one another in a single building. Mixed-use spaces often deploy their ground floor areas for restaurant, shopping, and other commercial needs, while the upper floors serve as apartment buildings for local residents. Living in a mixed-use building is a great way to bring your life closer to the action. People can live and work in their local community with ease in these types of settings, and getting to the store or your favorite pub for a drink with friends after work is easier than ever before.

The benefits of these types of real estate are varied. Continue reading to learn more about the mixed-use facilities in your area to gain a better appreciation of your options as an apartment renter or buyer, or a commercial real estate investor looking for a new opportunity to add something unique and special to your portfolio.

Mixed-use properties add increased walkability to a community.

Walkability is a metric used to describe the ease of access that people in cities experience. Services and businesses of all sorts are integral to the community experience that people are seeking when selecting a new home. Whether you’re a new tenant or someone searching for their next investment property, walkability is a core component of a great property selection in any urban environment.

Tenants are constantly on the hunt for properties that give them a comfortable lifestyle, and the truth is that this extends beyond the four walls that they call home. The environment that a person steps into as soon as they walk out the front door is a key area when making a selection on a new place to live and work. Shopping, grocery outlets, barbers, restaurants, and more are great for promoting a strong community fabric and a great place that people love to call home.

Likewise, this feature weighs heavily on commercial tenants as well. A restaurant or other walk-in-dominated business that requires extensive foot traffic is less likely to select a building that you own for their new base of operations if they can’t envision large community engagement with the storefront areas of the building.

Simply put, walkability offers an essential insight into the utility that a building can provide for all types of users in the community.

Mixed-use facilities can act as a fantastic progenitor of greater sustainability.

Environmental sustainability has become a hot-button issue in the last few years, and for excellent reason. Fighting to preserve the planet for ourselves and for future generations has grown in priority alongside a more interconnected landscape of people around the world and new and harrowing reports of disastrous consequences in the event of continued adherence to the status quo.

A move to incorporate greater measures of sustainability is something that’s great for people in all types of residential spaces, and it helps those in cities feel more at home throughout their town. Instead of developing separate spaces for residential communities and the businesses they rely on, mixing these arenas together is the perfect way to reduce communal reliance on both public and private transportation, creating a major difference in the local infrastructure and emissions that are produced in the daily grind of business and life itself.

Consider these features of a mixed-use facility as either a commercial developer or an individual looking for a new home.