Graph-Theoretic Approach to Resolving the Accessibility and Site Selection Issues in Real Estate Development`

The basic goal of an investment in real estate is to make the highest positive net return possible, and the process of attaining this commences at the site selection stage with accessibility being of paramount consideration. Many investors, appraisers, planners and developers often base site selection and analysis of accessibility on intuition and mere physical observation of neighborhoods without scientific approach The aim of this study is therefore to examine the application of graph-theoretic analysis in resolving the challenge of improper site selection process and accessibility issues in real estate planning development. In attaining the aim, the satellite map of the study area was derived and converted into linear graph regardless of the width, length and quality of roads. The nodal points of roads that form the network were serially numbered and translated into simple matrix of the number to obtain the accessibility indices for the ranking of access routes in the study area. The study found that the graph-theoretic approach was useful in analyzing ami resolving the accessibility and site selection issues 111 real estate development p1ocess. The findings would provide better understanding of determination of accessibility which hithel1o had been done by mere intuition by real estate appraisers and planners through the application of the approach This is applicable to mform developers take decision relating to choice of locations by scientifically establishing the most accessibilily location and thus assists in site selection Also, it would assist the development appraisers in the ranking of several of locations along al1erial routes with a view to determining sustainable physical developments. In the choice of site for real estate development, the investors usually desire the site that has potential for high positive net return. In many cases . decisions on site selection are usually based on intuition or mere subjective assumptions. especially in develo pi ng economies; th is often leads to defective and abandoned projects. For viable development projects , proper site selection is largely related to accessibility with the innate assumption that must be based on scientific approaches and modern techniques. A number of approaches have been adopted in determining the most accessible site. and by implication, selecting the site that is most likely to be viable in terms of demand for a proposed development project upon comp le tion . In other words, the techn iques assist in expla in ing the effects of accessibility on property values and associated with the choice of site that is most accessible since property value is a function of level of accessbility. The modern techniques include cummulative-opportunity type measure. gravity-based measure. weighted -average distance , utility-based measure, space syntax, route structure analysis, multiple regression model, hedonic modeL expert system heuristics , and graph theory (see Ogunsanya, 1986; Rallis . 1988: Geertman and Ritsema , 1995: Kwan, 1998; Wyatt, 1999, Aderamo , 2003: Oni .