An interesting article, first seen in The Wall Street Journal, surfaced over the weekend in our local newspaper, The Chicago Tribune. In it, the author discussed how urban living appeals to two diverse demographics that you might not think about — Baby Boomers and Millennials, that groups of 20somethings born between the late 1970s and mid 1990s.

Each finds condo and townhome living in our nation’s urban centers appealing — the Baby Boomers favor the wide choices of dining and entertainment — as well as the many cultural attractions — while the Millennials, seeking refuge from the suburban sprawl they typically grew up with, find the nightlife and large groups of similarly-minded peers attractive. Both groups, of course, love the public transportation options, typically rail line and bus, though the relative closeness of everything also appeals to those seeking a healthy lifestyle — or at least those who think they do!

While most urban builders are seeing only a diluted version of the housing crisis that is shaking and quaking their suburban brethren, there seems to be even more reasons now why homebuyers will be returning to our urban areas.

Smart homebuilders might want to study who their developments appeal to and style their sales approach for each demographic. We know of one builder in Omaha, Bluestone Development, who’s rowhomes specifically reach out to Baby Boomers seeking to make 50 the new 20. And their loft home product is so twenty-centric that their online floorplans show typical furniture layouts for units named The Lounge, The Gamer and The Bartender!

While many smart homebuilders and developers have been combining village-style shopping experiences with urban condos and lofts, RIck Caruso of Los Angeles-based Caruso Affiliates has brought this luxury lifestyle to the next level with mini communities that are almost like villages from a forgotten era.

A recent article at CNN spoke about Caruso’s luxury malls, like The Grove in Los Angeles and the new Americana in nearby Glendale. Apparently, local residents and visitors alike are falling in love with the mixture of parks, promenades, fountains and plazas integrated with upscale retail and are spending serious money during their experiences.

Reading the mood of today’s savvy consumer, these developments utilize the richest materials and design integrity to create meticulously detailed environments that feel inviting, safe and comfortable for families and people of all ages.

The Americana development adds a new component — 300 condos and apartments above the shops as Caruso says that they are in the place-creation business, not just retail developers. The setting is complete with curbs and street lights, fountains and a little trolley that runs through the project.

Smart homebuilding developers take note — The Grove attracts 25 million shoppers a year and sales receipts have shown the typical shopper spends twice as much as consumers going to indoor malls. With gas prices on the rise, visitors and residents alike are finding these little slices of Americana to be exactly the type of relief, entertainment and lifestyle they’ve been looking for.

There was a great story over at NPR this week about consumers who work in major cities flocking back to urban areas to take advantage of shorter commutes (and, thus, less gas consumption — something becoming more and more of a factor), closer amenities such as shopping and cultural attractions and more time-efficient living (imagine — no more mowing that acre of grass every week!).

Urban homebuilders must be delighted to see their average home’s selling price staying stable, if not rising (the NPR story mentioned median home prices in the city actually increasing 3.5% compared to a year ago). It would seem the allure of home “bigger and better” on the outskirts of metropolitan areas have lost their charm in the face of $120/barrel oil and $4 a gallon gas.

The lesson for urban homebuilders (and even those who have developments in very centric, amenity-rich areas that also have the added bonus of an efficient and easy-to-use public transportation system) is to really educate consumers as to the true advantages of thinking smaller when they consider an urban home.

Wise marketers may still have to play part of the incentive or promotion game that plagues the industry now, but a smarter strategy is to stress the intangible advantages of the location of their development. Instead of gas cards to encourage sales center visits, reward potential buyers with gift certificates to local restaurants, coffee bars and cultural attractions — anything to keep them in the area and get them to see the benefits of “staying local.”