{"id":186702,"date":"2026-02-02T10:41:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T17:41:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/?p=186702"},"modified":"2026-02-02T10:41:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T17:41:36","slug":"the-largest-infrastructure-buildout-in-human-history-could-be-a-massive-opportunity-for-real-estate-investors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/the-largest-infrastructure-buildout-in-human-history-could-be-a-massive-opportunity-for-real-estate-investors","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThe Largest Infrastructure Buildout in Human History\u201d Could Be a Massive Opportunity For Real Estate Investors"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A real estate gold rush is coming to a town near you\u2014only this time there won\u2019t be shiny nuggets glinting in the sunlight amongst the sound of picks and shovels, but silicon chips surrounded by the whir of sophisticated HVAC systems, keeping racks of hard drives cool.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe largest infrastructure buildout in human history,\u201d is how Nvidia CEO <\/span>Jensen Huang described it<\/span><\/a> at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, recently. <\/span>Huang\u2019s company provides the chips and supercomputers <\/span>responsible for<\/span> the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, which <\/span>have been<\/span> in unprecedented demand <\/span>by<\/span> every major tech company <\/span>that is<\/span> spending trillions of dollars <\/span>developing<\/span> data centers across the U.S.<\/span> In the process, they are bringing an arsenal of jobs and tertiary businesses to the country, with vast amounts of housing a natural by-product.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Construction Jobs Are in Unprecedented High Demand<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Aside from the tech- and energy-related jobs that data center construction will bring, Huang stated that traditional blue-collar jobs will also offer six-figure salaries. \u201cIt\u2019s wonderful that the jobs are related to tradecraft, and we\u2019re going to have plumbers and electricians and construction and steelworkers,\u201d he said at Davos in a conversation with BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, as reported by <\/span>Fortune<\/span><\/a><\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Global management consulting firm McKinsey estimated in a<\/span> report<\/span><\/a> that, in the U.S. alone, there will be a need for an additional 130,000 trained electricians, <\/span>as well as<\/span> 240,000 construction laborers and 150,000 construction supervisors.<\/span> \u201cEverybody should be able to make a great living,\u201d Huang said. \u201cYou don\u2019t need to have a Ph.D. in computer science to do so.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent<\/span> ConstructionConnect report<\/span><\/a> gives some idea of the scale of the need for construction workers in data center hubs such as<\/span> Virginia, Texas, Pennsylvania, Georgia<\/span><\/a>, and Ohio. Spending reached about $53.7 billion year to date through November 2025, a 138.6% jump over 2024.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How the Vast Expenditure Trickles Down to Small Landlords<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A<\/span> McKinsey report<\/span><\/a> suggests that U.S. data center demand could triple by 2030, requiring a $7 trillion investment to keep up. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent pact between OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle saw the three companies pledge to commit $500 billion in AI infrastructure through 2029 through the Stargate Project, <\/span>The New York Times<\/span><\/a><\/em> reported, with Meta and Alphabet doing likewise. For smaller investors, knowing that that kind of commitment is in place for years to come means local real estate markets are unlikely to experience any boom-and-bust cycle. <\/span>Instead, a boom-and-boom scenario <\/span>means<\/span> relocating capital to data center <\/span>area<\/span> markets is likely <\/span>to be<\/span> a<\/span> prudent <\/span>move<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jobs, Wages, and Local Housing Demand<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The immediate demand for construction workers means there is also an immediate need for housing. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe same electricians, welders, heavy equipment operators, and HVAC specialists who once built office towers or shopping centers are now <\/span>being pulled<\/span> into data center projects at record speed,\u201d Skillit CEO Fraser Patterson told Realtor.com. He added that in Dallas, electricians working on data center projects are earning 30% more than the going rate for a similar role. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

High wages and labor demand are supporting local communities, driving the need for workforce housing, which means that mom-and-pop landlords in the right submarkets could enjoy a deluge of qualified tenants, stronger occupancy, and room for wage gains.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rural States Could See Their Economies Change<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Rural states with minimum infrastructure and housing could see a dramatic shift in their economy when data centers come to town. For example, Wyoming is on track to <\/span>become a major AI hub<\/span><\/a> after Laramie County approved plans for a 1.8-gigawatt data center campus that could expand to 10 gigawatts, making it the largest AI campus in the country. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To take advantage, real estate investors have a few different angles they can pursue, including:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n