Features

Active Adult Communities Thrived During Height of Pandemic, Say NIC Panelists

by Taylor Williams November 9, 2021

By Jeff Shaw HOUSTON — Although the seniors housing industry as a whole suffered big setbacks throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, hitting record-low occupancy rates across the board, one sub-segment was an exception to the rule. “During COVID there were clear winners and losers in commercial real estate,” said Aron Will, vice chairman of debt and structured finance at CBRE and co-head of CBRE Senior Housing. “Industrial, life sciences, medical office and multifamily were very clear winners. But one asset class that’s been overlooked is active adult, as it was also a very clear winner.” Although there is much discussion around how to define the active adult segment, generally it’s an age-restricted apartment community for physically healthy seniors who don’t yet need the services in independent living such as meal preparation, cleaning or assistance with the activities of daily living. Without temporary government regulations stopping move-ins to active adult communities — plus a younger, healthier resident than in independent living or assisted living — active adult communities thrived during the pandemic. Lease renewal rates were 80 percent; collections were close to 100 percent and the segment experienced “phenomenal rent growth,” according to Will. Will’s comments came during a panel he moderated …

November 9, 2021

Build-to-Rent Content Partner Development Features Midwest Multifamily Northeast Southeast Texas Walker & Dunlop Western

Demographic, Economic Trends Likely to Sustain Build-For-Rent Sector’s Growth

by Sarah Daniels November 4, 2021

Institutional investors have been increasingly interested in the build-for-rent (BFR) space over the last five years. But the pandemic poured gasoline on an asset class that offers tenants space, privacy and the flexibility of renting. Now that COVID appears to be receding in some areas, can the BFR sector maintain its growth? Paul Garner, director at Walker & Dunlop, believes that demographic and economic trends will maintain the demand for BFR, especially in the Sun Belt states, for the near future. Opportunities for Growth and a Focus on the Sun Belt Garner sees the most potential for BFR growth in suburban areas — particularly those located 15 to 20 minutes outside of a metropolitan statistical area. The economic growth and increasing populations of nearby cities determine whether suburban BFR setups will attract tenants. According to Garner, the dedicated BFR/single-family rental (SFR) team at Walker & Dunlop has started to see a lot of action similar to what they saw on the West Coast (especially in Arizona) four or five years ago. He notes, “BFR properties are becoming increasingly popular all throughout the Sun Belt states, especially Florida and the Carolinas. There’s a potential in this area to get land very, …

November 4, 2021

Features

ULI Forecast: Transaction Volumes Poised to Bounce Back to Pre-Pandemic Levels

by Katie Sloan November 3, 2021

WASHINGTON, D.C. — While the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is still being felt across all sectors of commercial real estate, economists are forecasting strong recovery in the years ahead. This prediction comes from the Fall 2021 Urban Land Institute (ULI) Economic Forecast for 2021 to 2023. The semiannual survey polled 49 economists and analysts at 36 leading real estate organizations on 27 key economic and real estate indicators, ranging from GDP and employment figures to commercial real estate transactions and property sector performance. US GDP shrank 3.4 percent in 2020 — the first economic contraction since 2009. Recovery from the pandemic is expected to occur dramatically faster than what transpired following the Great Recession of 2007-2009, according to Washington, D.C.-based ULI. A bounceback in growth of 5.7 percent is expected in 2021 with continued growth of 4 percent in 2022. The U.S. economy recorded a net loss of 9.42 million jobs in 2020. Economists predict a two-year recovery process is imminent, with a growth of 6 million jobs in 2021 and 3.7 million jobs in 2022 for total growth marginally exceeding the jobs lost. Further growth of 2.2 million jobs is forecast in 2023. The inflation forecast for 2021 …

November 3, 2021

Lee & Associates Breaks Down Third-Quarter Economic Outlook by Sector

by Sarah Daniels November 1, 2021

The calculus for which asset classes are likeliest to demonstrate strong growth continues to shift as the pandemic appears to be receding. Patterns in labor shortages, supply chain issues and material costs have managed to solidify through the third quarter of 2021. Lee & Associates’ newly released Q3 2021 North America Market Report dissects third-quarter 2021 industrial, office, retail and multifamily findings, with a focus on where demand is moving and the challenges facing each asset class. Lee & Associates has made the full market report available at this link (with further breakdowns of factors like vacancy rates, market rents, inventory square footage and cap rates by city). Below is a bird’s-eye overview of four commercial real estate asset classes as general categories, broken down to frame each through the trends and complications they faced up to the fourth quarter, according to Lee & Associates’ research. Industrial: Q3 Posts More Record Demand Pandemic-fueled consumer spending drove up third-quarter demand for warehouse and distribution facilities that eclipsed previous records. And despite a nationwide surge in new construction, some metros can barely accommodate the pace of tenant expansion. Additionally, year-over-year rent growth is at a record 6.7 percent for the industrial property sector …

November 1, 2021

Acquisitions Features Illinois Midwest Restaurant Retail

JLL: Shoppers Returning to Lifestyle Shopping Centers Propels Investor Resurgence

by John Nelson October 28, 2021

CHICAGO — Lifestyle shopping centers, or open-air malls, may be one of the most undervalued retail asset classes currently. According to JLL, increased customer foot traffic, declining vacancies coupled with growing rental rates and broad-based expansion plans from retailers are bolstering confidence, as well as signaling that lifestyle shopping centers will come back strongly. While smaller grocery-anchored retail centers have dominated investment demand recently, the increase in COVID-19 vaccinations and reopenings are motivating shoppers — and investors — to return to other retail segments. Lifestyle centers were conceived as a modern-day interpretation of the mall and are known for their outdoor settings and incorporation of other uses like office, apartments and hotels. Their tenant mixes also usually include upscale, national chains, as well as specialty retail with dining and entertainment options. “Leasing demand from new tenants in the market, such as digitally native brands, as well as traditional mall retailers looking for an off-mall growth strategy, are accelerating the desirability of this asset class to consumers,” said Chris Angelone, senior managing director of JLL and co-leader of its capital markets retail division. “Investors are taking notice and will seek out performance and growth potential. Two to four years from now, …

October 28, 2021

Features Life Sciences Retail Texas

Falling in Love: A New Way to Think About Commercial Real Estate

by John Nelson October 26, 2021

By Spencer Levy, CBRE In the wake of COVID-19, many sophisticated commercial real estate advisors and investors are rejecting the old industry adage to “never fall in love with your real estate.” That’s because commercial real estate — like so many investment decisions — is influenced by basic human emotions. And unlike stocks or bonds, office buildings, shopping malls and warehouse facilities are not traded like a commodity. Commercial real estate decisions by both investors and occupiers can’t be entirely data driven. Of course, deep financial analysis, sophisticated data and powerful algorithms are important. But data is often significantly impacted by human emotion. That’s why psychology can have as much influence on real estate decision-making as cold, hard math. COVID-19 duress At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in September 2020, CBRE’s semiannual Office Occupier Sentiment Survey found that 39 percent of large companies planned to significantly reduce their commercial real estate footprint (meaning cuts of roughly a third or more). But in our latest Spring 2021 survey, as the world began to emerge from the pandemic, that number anticipating significant cuts was down to only 9 percent. What accounts for such a stark difference? Emotion. In 2020, there was …

October 26, 2021

Features Life Sciences

Emerging Trends 2022 Report: Flexibility, Resilience to Drive Commercial Real Estate for Next Decade

by Jeff Shaw October 21, 2021

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Flexibility, convenience and ultimately commercial real estate’s resilience will drive the industry over the next decade as owners respond to and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s according to Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2022, an annual report jointly produced by PwC US and the Urban Land Institute (ULI). The report includes proprietary data and insights from nearly 1,700 leading real estate industry experts, gathered both through in-person interviews and a survey. Consumer expectations of traditionally designed spaces have changed, and there will likely be a massive shift in the functionality of homes, offices, shopping centers and healthcare spaces, according to Washington, D.C.-based ULI. Property markets that were once predictable will likely remain in a bubble of uncertainty, but decision-making confidence has improved since last year, the report found. Three-quarters of respondents in the 2022 survey report feeling confident making those same long-term strategic decisions compared to less than half in the 2021 survey. Property investment is top of mind for institutional investors in both traditional and alternative sectors as risk remains low and interest rates stay attractive. Urban landscapes are facing change as new land uses and updated zoning allow markets to evolve. All these factors …

October 21, 2021

Development Features Multifamily Student Housing

Student Housing Supply, Demand Reach Healthy Balance

by Jeff Shaw October 19, 2021

There are 11 university markets set to add 1,000 or more student housing beds this year, according to data from RealPage. The Richardson, Texas-based research firm tracks new construction, rental rates and leasing activity in 175 core university markets for its student housing data. Overall, RealPage reports that approximately 42,000 new purpose-built student housing beds will deliver in 2021, which falls into the firm’s normal supply growth range of 40,000 to 50,000 beds annually. Carl Whitaker, senior manager of market analytics at RealPage, says that figure is an encouraging sign given the uncertainty and disruptions of the past year from the COVID-19 pandemic. “That 42,000-bed number was about what we hoped to see,” says Whitaker. “The pandemic was so sudden that developers that were looking to build in 2021 had gotten just far enough down the planning process that they went ahead and proceeded as if it was a normal year.” In Walker & Dunlop’s annual year-end student housing report (2020), the Bethesda, Maryland-based firm found that 38,036 student housing beds will come on-line in 2021, which is a 27 percent decrease from 2020. For both 2020 and 2021, the Southeastern United States is dominating in terms of new student …

October 19, 2021

Features Leasing Activity Market Reports Southeast Feature Archive

NAIOP: Commercial Real Estate Industry Sentiment Up to 56 in September, Near Pre-Pandemic Level

by Julia Sanders October 14, 2021

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Commercial real estate professionals indicate conditions in the industry have returned to approximately where they were before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The National Association of Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP) Fall 2021 Commercial Real Estate Sentiment Index. The index for September 2021 came in at 56 out of 100, up slightly from 54 in April 2021 and identical to March 2019, a year before the pandemic began. At the pandemic’s worst point — March through September 2020 — the index sank to 45. The NAIOP Sentiment Index was created to predict general conditions in the commercial real estate industry over the following 12 months by asking industry professionals to predict conditions for their own projects and markets. The Fall 2021 report surveyed a total of 357 respondents from 263 distinct companies from Sept. 7 to 14. The index asks respondents questions about jobs, space markets, construction costs, capital markets and other conditions for real estate development. A sentiment index below 50 means many believe there will be unfavorable commercial real estate conditions over the next 12 months; 50 means little to no change in commercial real estate conditions are expected; and greater than …

October 14, 2021

Features Leasing Activity Office Southeast Southeast Feature Archive

Rise of Remote Workforce Creates Paradigm Shift in Office Sector

by John Nelson October 12, 2021

In September, President Joe Biden issued a federal edict for large employers (100 employees or more) to require vaccines against COVID-19, or requiring weekly COVID-19 testing. The latest reporting out of Washington, D.C., is that the mandate carried out by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will be enforced with hefty fines for noncompliance. Several blue-chip companies such as Anthem, Delta Air Lines, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, Twitter, Tyson Foods, ViacomCBS, The Walt Disney Co. and Walmart have already announced plans to get their workforce fully or close to fully vaccinated. Clinton McKellar, executive director of Cushman & Wakefield’s Atlanta office, says that in addition to protecting their employees’ health, a large-scale vaccine mandate could potentially facilitate a return to pre-pandemic norms for corporate America, thus more employees in the office. “Giving vaccinated employees the opportunity to safely return to the office allows for impromptu meetings and collaboration that is difficult to replicate in a remote environment,” says McKellar. “In Atlanta, what is proven out is that people, if given the choice, would rather work from home than come to the office and wear a mask.” Clients are telling brokers that their workers who are regularly in their office are …

October 12, 2021

Newer Posts

Older Posts