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Lenders Investors InterFace DFW Industrial
Conference CoverageFeaturesIndustrialTexasTexas & Oklahoma Feature Archive

InterFace Panel: Dallas Industrial Market Poised to Withstand Recession

by John Nelson

DALLAS — The Dallas industrial market is on fire, as a number of industry professionals repeatedly pointed out during the InterFace DFW Industrial conference. Held on Sept. 4 at the Westin Galleria Hotel in Dallas, the event drew more than 200 people in its inaugural year. Demand for industrial real estate from tenants, investors and lenders is strong enough to insulate the Dallas market from capitulation, even if the U.S. economy enters a recession, which some economists think may still be a ways off. During the event’s lenders and investors panel, speakers credited strong job and population growth in Dallas for this market insulation. Annually, the metroplex has added roughly 100,000 people and 75,000 jobs for the past several years. The market boasts a vacancy rate of 6 percent even with more than 30 million square feet of space under construction, according to CoStar Group. And tenant demand in Dallas continues to surge as well, fueling 12-month rent growth of 5.6 percent. Nikki Gibson, senior counsel at Bell Nunnally, moderated the panel. Market Evolution Central to the panel’s discussion as to why the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) industrial market is likely to weather severe economic storms was the notion that the …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesGeorgiaMixed-UseSoutheast

InterFace Panelists Predict More Variety, Less Food for Future Mixed-Use Projects

by Alex Patton

ATLANTA — Traditionally, mixed-use developments are multifamily-based with ground-floor retail or dining and a few floors of offices in between or adjacent. That combination still works, but changing demographics demand more variety from the popular model, according to panelists of InterFace Mixed-Use Southeast on Aug. 22 at the Westin Buckhead in Atlanta. Projects like The Battery Atlanta and the upcoming Revel development in nearby Duluth are anchored by popular entertainment sites — SunTrust Park and Infinite Energy Center, respectively. Other upcoming developments in the Southeast like Kern’s Bakery in Knoxville, Tennessee, will feature student housing, while others like 12|12 Aventura in South Florida will feature seniors housing units. Speakers at the show cautioned that while restaurants are necessary elements of a successful mixed-use project and often bring some added variety, food and beverage options nationwide are becoming oversaturated, especially in mixed-use settings. Professionals involved with some of the most successful mixed-use developments in the Southeast spoke about prominent trends and the future of the product type at the conference. Overall the various speakers were bullish on the product type going forward as demand generators such as job and population growth are strong in the Southeast’s top markets. “I see two …

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Conference CoverageDevelopmentFeaturesGeorgiaMixed-UseSoutheastSoutheast Feature Archive

Community Involvement is Necessary for Successful Mixed-Use Projects, Says InterFace Panel

by John Nelson

It’s not just a good idea for real estate developers to engage the surrounding community as part of their due diligence: It’s essential. While on stage at the close of the InterFace Southeast Mixed-Use conference, some of the Southeast’s most prolific mixed-use developers and owners say community involvement can be the difference between success and failure. “Nowadays, if you want a successful mixed-use project, you have to get in deep with the community and all the stakeholders — whether it’s adjacent landowners, homeowners associations, NPUs [neighborhood planning units] or local architecture committees,” said Jeff Garrison, development partner at S.J. Collins Enterprises, an Atlanta-based commercial real estate developer. “We conducted 50 meetings for The Interlock project before we even submitted for zoning. It’s overboard, but that’s what makes it successful.” The Interlock is an upcoming $450 million mixed-use development in Atlanta’s popular West Midtown district. S.J. Collins recently inked WeWork to lease three stories of its office tower, which will also have Georgia Tech as an anchor. Garrison says that the project’s 145-room Marriott Tribute Portfolio hotel was a direct result of feedback that his team heard from the community. “We didn’t have a hotel in our original design,” said Garrison. …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesMultifamilySeniors Housing

Executive Directors Take on Heightened Importance in Evolving Seniors Housing Industry, Says InterFace Power Panel

by Jeff Shaw

CHICAGO — Operators in the senior living space universally agree that the executive director holds the single most important position at their communities and that the job is a daily grind. These frontline administrators are not only tasked with providing the best care possible for residents, but they must also demonstrate strong financial acumen. They are frequently thrust into the role of crisis manager, all the while they are expected to be strategic thinkers. Rather than simply give lip service to the idea that the executive director is an invaluable part of the overall operation, Charter Senior Living is putting its money where its mouth is. The operator of 14 senior living communities in nine states is exploring the possibility of giving executive directors an ownership stake in its communities. “I know that’s been talked about for years, but we are actually in a position [to provide that incentive] on top of a very competitive financial package,” said Keven Bennema, president and CEO of Charter Senior Living, which offers independent living, assisted living and memory care across its properties concentrated in the Midwest and Southeast. It’s important for department heads to feel a sense of ownership as well, added Bennema, …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesHealthcareNorth CarolinaSoutheastSoutheast Feature Archive

Medical Office Sales Active in Southeast Despite Slowdown Nationally, Say InterFace Panelists

by Alex Tostado

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Medical office buildings (MOBs) were trading at steady increases year over year from 2011 to 2017, says P.J. Camp, principal and co-founder of Atlanta-based healthcare real estate investment firm Hammond Hanlon Camp. In 2018, however, MOB transactions started to dip, a trend that bled into the first part of this year. There were $14 billion worth of MOB transactions in 2017 but $12 billion worth in 2018. The first quarter of 2019 saw $1.7 billion worth of transactions in the sector, down 32 percent from the first quarter of 2018 and the lowest quarterly total in five years, says Camp. Camp was a participant on the investment panel at the ninth annual InterFace Healthcare Real Estate Carolinas conference. The half-day information and networking event was held May 30 in Charlotte and was hosted by Southeast Real Estate Business and Seniors Housing Business. Also participating in the panel were Mervyn Alphonso, senior vice president of Anchor Health Properties; Steven Reedy, managing director of CIT Healthcare Finance; Stephen Pandos, director of finance at Insite Properties; Gerald Quattlebaum, senior vice president of Flagship Healthcare Properties; Jim McMahon, senior director at Capital One Healthcare; and moderator Andy Lawler, healthcare development partner …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesMultifamilySeniors Housing

InterFace Seniors Midwest: Brookdale CEO Sees ‘Bright Future’ Following Major Turnaround Initiative

by Jeff Shaw

CHICAGO — A lot has happened at Brookdale Senior Living (NYSE: BKD) over the last few years in what can only be described as a tumultuous period. Operating 844 communities as of March 31, the company is still the largest owner and operator of seniors housing in the country. However, Brookdale’s stock price has struggled mightily in recent years. While trading at nearly $40 per share as recently as 2015, the company’s stock price has not gone above $10 per share since late 2017. (The stock closed at $6.52 per share on Tuesday, June 11.) The Brentwood, Tennessee-based company entertained acquisition offers at least twice, but instead settled on a change of leadership and a turnaround plan. Lucinda “Cindy” Baier was promoted from CFO to CEO in 2018 and immediately started trying to right the ship at Brookdale, in large part by paring the size of its portfolio up to 20 percent. Her efforts appear to be paying off. According to the company’s first-quarter 2019 earnings report, same-community revenue per occupied unit (RevPOR) increased 3.7 percent on a sequential-quarter basis and 3.1 percent on a year-over-year basis.  In addition, same-community independent living occupancy remained at 90 percent for a second …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesNorth CarolinaSouth CarolinaSoutheastSoutheast Feature Archive

Best Deals for Investors, Lenders Lie Outside of Urban Cores, Say InterFace Carolinas Panelists

by John Nelson

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The urban districts in the Carolinas have a lot going for them: Honeywell is leasing nine floors within downtown Charlotte’s Legacy Union project; The Fallon Co. is building a 20-story office tower in downtown Raleigh; and The Beach Co. and Centennial American Properties are separately building mixed-use developments in downtown Greenville. While these projects only scratch the surface of the new developments in the Carolinas’ urban markets — especially for new apartments — speakers at the 10th annual InterFace Carolinas conference said that for a market to be truly successful, there needs to be “growth in both” urban and suburban districts. Panelists emphasized that some of the best deals for their businesses lie outside of the urban cores in the two-state region. “[Suburban] projects aren’t as expensive to develop,” said Carman Liuzzo, senior vice president of investments at Highwoods Properties. “I hope suburban [developments] don’t go away, our most recent three office developments have been in suburban Nashville, Tampa and Raleigh.” Liuzzo was a participant on the “State of the Market” panel that took place Thursday, May 30 at Hilton City Center in Uptown Charlotte. InterFace Conference Group and Southeast Real Estate Business hosted the conference, which …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesNorth CarolinaSoutheastSoutheast Feature Archive

U.S. Economic Expansion Has Clear Runway to 2021, Says Wells Fargo Economist

by John Nelson

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The current U.S. economic expansion — 120 months and counting — is poised to become the longest in modern U.S. history come July. Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo Securities, says the runway is clear for additional growth until at least 2021 before the start of the next recession. The last time the U.S. economy expanded for such a long duration was from 1991 to 2001. Post World War II, the average length of economic expansions has been 58 months, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. “We don’t have a recession in our forecast. We put it in 2021 because we won’t forecast 2021 until September,” said Vitner. “We’ll likely put the recession in 2022. It’s hard to predict a recession years out. It doesn’t feel like there’s a recession right around the corner, but it never feels that way.” Vitner’s comments came during the keynote address at the 10th annual InterFace Carolinas, a networking and information conference that took place on May 30 at Hilton City Center in Uptown Charlotte. Hosted by InterFace Conference Group and Southeast Real Estate Business, the event brought together more than 240 attendees and featured six panels on …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesMultifamilyNevadaWesternWestern Feature Archive

Vegas Multifamily Renters Want Higher End Properties, Need More Affordable Options, Say InterFace Panelists

by John Nelson

The Las Vegas Valley’s multifamily market is at an interesting crossroads, according to panelists at InterFace Las Vegas Multifamily. Hosted by InterFace Conference Group and Western Real Estate Business, the half-day conference was held April 24 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas. The metro area’s population is growing at a rapid pace, with a net migration of 45,000 new residents in 2018, according to research from Marcus & Millichap. This is the largest annual total for Las Vegas since 2007, right before everything went south for the Southwest. “We started to recover later,” said Stephen Miller, professor and director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), who gave the conference’s special lunch presentation. “The recession here was deeper than the national average. It has been a slow slog, but in the last couple of years we’ve been growing more rapidly than any other state in the union in terms of employment.” He’s not wrong. Companies have already added 33,000 new positions to the Las Vegas Valley in 2019. This is a 3.2 percent gain that exceeds the previous five-year average, noted Marcus & Millichap. Most of these jobs were …

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Conference CoverageFeaturesIndustrialNevadaWesternWestern Feature Archive

‘Mature’ Las Vegas Industrial Market a Safe Bet for Investors, Say InterFace Panelists

by John Nelson

A stable economy, lower unemployment rate and diversification of industries are bringing more overall investment activity to Southern Nevada’s industrial real estate scene, noted panelists at InterFace Las Vegas Industrial. Hosted by InterFace Conference Group and Western Real Estate Business, the half-day conference was held April 24 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas. Using the terms “investment” and “Las Vegas” in the same sentence can cause many veteran decision-makers to pause as they remember the state that this city was in 10 years ago. During the Great Recession, Las Vegas was struggling to survive and many were uncertain about the city’s long-term future as visitors shunned Vegas hotels and casinos as they went into self-preservation mode. “There was nothing more depressing here than the recession when you could drive from one side of town to the other in half an hour because no one was going to work,” said Larry Monkarsh, owner of LM Construction and moderator of the conference’s Developers/Owners panel. Times have certainly changed, ushering in a new era of investment, commerce and development that has brought a renewed sense of confidence to Las Vegas. Though market players will always have varying opinions, one word reigned …

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