To celebrate Women’s History Month, ULI is highlighting some of our female members who are doing great work in the real estate and development sector.

Malee Tobias is Principal, Chief Strategist, and founder of NewPlace Partners, a boutique consulting firm that combines research with consumer-focused insights to create development and organizational strategies for master-planned community developers and residential builders. Much of her current work involves guiding mixed-use developers and builders through strategic growth initiatives, helping them identify market opportunities and create distinctive communities.

Malee has worked on a wide variety of developments and geographies throughout her career, both in consulting and working in companies with diverse, interesting portfolios. In college, she focused on urban economics, and says she has “always been interested in the built environment and how great places positively impact people’s lives and create value for society.” In particular, she is drawn to how data and insights can help shape good development strategies.

Malee’s project experience is broad and multi-faceted, ranging from economic development, downtown revitalization, large-scale urban infill, military base reuse, to large-scale master-planned communities. She has led an array of strategic company initiatives throughout her roles as a market researcher, an economic impact analyst, a consumer insights expert, marketer, and strategist, and C-suite executive. On top of this, she has worked in over 40 markets in 20 states, plus Canada.

In these positions, Malee says that “at times, particularly earlier on in my career, I’ve found myself as the only woman or person of color in executive meetings and boardrooms.” She has navigated these challenges in several ways. First, by doing her homework and focusing on bringing data-driven insights to the table, letting the strength of her analysis speak for itself. Second, by actively seeking and creating mentorship opportunities throughout her career. “My mentors and role models showed me the possibilities beyond and how to break the mold,” says Malee. “The landscape is changing, but there’s still progress to be made, which is why I continue to invest time in mentoring and creating opportunities for the next generation,” she adds.

Malee wraps it up by saying, “When I look at the landscape of our industry today, I see these principles embodied in the women making transformative contributions to planning and development. Their influence extends beyond their achievements—they’re reshaping how we approach community development, sustainability, and inclusive design. I’m grateful not just for what they’ve accomplished, but for how generously they’ve shared their wisdom along the way.”

Malee joined ULI because of the collaboration and knowledge-sharing it provides to create better communities. As someone who works at the intersection of market research, consumer insights, and community development, Malee says she values ULI’s interdisciplinary approach, bringing together diverse professionals across the real estate spectrum.

Malee joined a National Community Development Product Council almost fifteen years ago, served as Chair, and is currently Co-Chair. She says that joining this council has been one of the best things she’s done for her career and has been very rewarding professionally and personally. She emphasizes that serving on the council has allowed her to contribute to thought leadership, expand her networks, and learn from peers facing similar challenges across different markets, all in a safe space.

Thank you to Malee for her involvement with ULI and for sharing about her career with fellow ULI members!