Industrial real estate remains the market’s backbone, benefiting from the region’s lower land costs and proximity to New York City compared to the saturated New Jersey corridors. Demand for last-mile distribution, flex space and cold storage continues, although tariffs on steel, aluminum, imported flooring and HVAC equipment have increased construction costs and underwriting complexity. Developers who locked in pricing a year ago hold a real advantage over those bidding today.

Multifamily fundamentals remain structurally strong, fueled by continued migration from New York City and inner-ring suburbs to more accessible housing. Vacancy rates remain tight, and rent growth continues to outpace operating costs. The constraint is production. Rising costs, limited land availability and lengthy entitlement timelines have stalled developers who otherwise have the sites, financing and demand. What is missing is regulatory certainty.

Retail has proven more resilient than many predicted. Grocery-anchored centers are full, medical and healthcare users have absorbed former big-box vacancies, and service-oriented retailers—childcare, fitness, veterinary and specialty food—are filling spaces once thought permanently dark. Experiential retail is driving traffic in larger mixed-use projects. Older, poorly located strip centers remain the exception to an otherwise positive picture.

Which brings me to the most significant development in years: Gov. Hochul’s SEQRA reform under her “Let Them Build” agenda.

For decades, the State Environmental Quality Review Act has been used by development opponents to trigger years of delay and litigation that financially derail projects before a shovel ever breaks ground—not because of genuine environmental harm, but as a procedural tool. A study by New York City and State Homes and Community Renewal found that virtually none of the thousands of housing projects undergoing SEQRA review had significant environmental impacts. Instead, the process was creating delays rather than identifying problems.

Gov. Hochul’s reform, incorporated into the FY27 Budget, would exempt qualifying housing projects—those on previously disturbed land, compliant with local zoning, connected to water and sewer infrastructure, and outside flood zones—from additional review, while preserving protections for air quality, water quality and environmental justice. For the Hudson Valley, where stalled multifamily projects in Nyack, Spring Valley, Haverstraw, Beacon, Newburgh and Poughkeepsie sit on sites with existing infrastructure, community support and a genuine need for housing, this is transformational. The reform will not override local zoning or local control, but it removes the procedural filibuster. A municipality that approves a project will have a clearer path to seeing it move forward.

As the governor has said, communities that say yes to housing should not become trapped in regulatory hell—a policy signal that developers, lenders and brokers should take seriously. Jurisdictions that streamline approvals and update comprehensive plans now will distinguish themselves from those that continue using process as a growth-management tool. Beyond SEQRA, under-resourced planning boards, contested environmental impact statements and traffic studies used as political instruments remain significant sources of friction. However, Gov. Hochul’s directive for agencies to evaluate and track permitting processes signals a broader cultural shift.

Market conditions—interest rates, tariffs and selective lending—will resolve through the natural economic cycle, as they always do. The structural impediments enabled by SEQRA will not correct themselves; they require political courage and legislative action, which the governor has now provided. For those with capital, sites and patience, this is the time to be prepared.

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in the Rockland County Business Journal.

About the author:  Paul Adler, Esq. is Chief Strategy Officer, Rand Commercial | Rockland County, NY. He is an attorney and commercial real estate strategist with decades of experience in the Hudson Valley and New York metropolitan markets.

Published: July 16, 2026.