Welcome to this special edition of CLADmag in which we celebrate a significant pivot, as we extend our scope to cover residential.

It’s something we’ve contemplated for a while, as an increasing number of projects we’ve been covering have included residential, but these last few months the sheer quality of schemes coming across our desks drove things to a tipping point and we could no longer resist adding it to the mix.

We thought we’d kick off in style with this special focus to celebrate the rapidly growing area of home wellness – something which is adding value at every level of the housing market, from starter homes to super luxe residences.

From the next issue, it will be back to the broad CLAD coverage you’re familiar with, but with residential included in every issue going forward. Our next edition, for example, will feature an in-depth look at the new Water Street Tampa development in Florida, among other things.

As the biggest asset class in the world, residential development is the driver for an increasing number of projects and we’re seeing it powering the success of a wide range of schemes which would not previously have considered adding in housing.

On page 122, for example, we talk to Calvin and Frederick Tsao from Octave Living, about their work to democratise health in China through the development of properties centred on cultural, physical and mental wellbeing.

Octave’s biggest project to date – the amazing Sangha development in Suzhou – will include 109 single-family houses and 89 apartments, as a result of a government planning policy.

The Tsaos had not originally intended to include residential, but their resistance to the idea changed when they realised the profits from selling the units would fund the rest of the project and its social mandate.

As the world grows more populous, developments will increasingly include an element of residential – it spreads the risk, generates cash up-front if units are sold off-plan and brings life and commerce to places.

We’ve loved preparing this special issue of CLADmag and hope you find it inspiring and useful.

Come and talk to us if you have a scheme which includes a residential element which you’d like us to cover in a future edition – we’re also open to writing about individual homes if they represent a groundbreaking development of some kind.