Features

Q&A: Best Practices for Filling Vacant Big Box Retail Space

by Katie Sloan June 26, 2019

Shopping Center Business, sister publication to REBusinessOnline, recently sat down with Cynthia Nelson, senior managing director in the real estate solutions practice at FTI Consulting, to discuss the current retail landscape and tips and tricks for tackling big box vacancies. Tell me a bit about your outlook on the retail landscape at current. We’re going through a huge transformation in terms of how consumers buy retail goods and services and it is taking a toll on our shopping centers. Many big box spaces formerly occupied by retailers like Toys ‘R’ Us are going dark. I think we are in the midst of a longer period of transition, but nothing like the ‘retail apocalypse’ some are forecasting. The landscape is changing — I like to call it a ‘retail reincarnation.’ What would be your advice for an owner or a landlord looking to re-lease or redevelop vacant big box space? Owners and landlords have to be thinking about creative ways to maximize the value of available or vacant space at their shopping centers. The easiest and most straightforward route for filling a vacancy is re-leasing to a tenant that will use the same amount of space. This may not garner much …

June 26, 2019

Dodge Data Economist: Multifamily Development Wave Has Lenders Wary

by Kristin Harlow June 24, 2019

ATLANTA — Lenders are understandably exercising caution when it comes to financing multifamily housing development projects, says Robert Murray, chief economist for Dodge Data & Analytics, which tracks construction starts across commercial real estate. “Notwithstanding the pickup in activity we had in 2018 and notwithstanding the fact that millennials are still looking at apartments as opposed to single-family homes, we view multifamily housing as one of the more vulnerable parts of the construction industry right now.” The insights from Murray came during his mid-year outlook presentation before approximately 60 people who gathered at Le Meridien Perimeter in Atlanta on Friday, June 14. The attendees were largely building product manufacturers, with additional representation from financial services and construction staffing services. In 2018, construction starts in the multifamily sector totaled 534,000 nationwide, according to Dodge. The projection for 2019 is 495,000 units, which would equate to a 7 percent decrease. As for 2020, the decline could be as much as 15 percent, according to Murray. The national apartment vacancy rate for the first quarter of 2019 stood at 4.8 percent, up 10 basis points from 4.7 percent a year earlier, according to Reis, which tracks apartment completions and occupancy. Net absorption totaled …

June 24, 2019

Conference Coverage Features Healthcare North Carolina Southeast Southeast Feature Archive

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

by Alex Tostado June 20, 2019

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 …

June 20, 2019

Content Partner Features Hospitality

Hospitality Lending: Whose Market?

by Jeff Shaw June 20, 2019

As the economy continues its upward trajectory, hotels are enjoying the benefits of strong demand from both personal and business travel. Despite these solid operating fundamentals, many lenders are apprehensive about the record length of the current economic expansion and the impact that a future downturn may have on room rates and occupancy levels. In response to these growing fears, many capital sources have either tightened their lending criteria or decided to cease hospitality lending all together. As traditional sources of financing retreat, hospitality owners have had to look far and wide for lenders that remain receptive to this asset class. This has created opportunities for lesser-known sources of capital, like Chicago-based Alliant Credit Union, to finance high quality properties. By going against the trend and utilizing internal specialization, Alliant has been able to exercise a level of selectivity that a more crowded field prevented until recently. This has resulted in loans on well-located properties with demonstrable operating results that are run by highly experienced owners with the financial resources to withstand a downturn. The emergence of non-household name lenders has enabled an accomplished subset of borrowers to access needed liquidity and obtain favorable loan terms in light of the …

June 20, 2019

Features Multifamily Seniors Housing

Seniors Housing Developers Embrace Intergenerational Living Trends

by Jeff Shaw June 18, 2019

As the industry eagerly anticipates the arrival of baby boomers, intergenerational housing models are emerging as an attractive alternative for a group that wants a different type of retirement experience. Developers, operators and owners are tweaking time-tested intergenerational arrangements and trying new approaches. Mixing different age groups has benefits for everyone involved, experts say. It’s natural, and the way families lived until we started to move so far apart. Many elders like being around young children or helping them, since their grandchildren may not live nearby. Adolescents bring energy to a retirement community, with the added benefit of being able to teach seniors how to use their smart phones. Young adults can serve as a labor pool for senior living properties. College-based or -affiliated life plan communities have been around for decades. But developers are fine-tuning the model at a number of new high-profile college projects now underway. Legacy Pointe at the University of Central Florida, Orlando, is currently under development by the nonprofit CCRC Development Corp. Greystone Communities will manage and market the property. Residents will be able to attend classes and participate in learning programs. Other types of developments with an intergenerational spin are being rolled out. There …

June 18, 2019

Conference Coverage Features Multifamily Seniors Housing

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

by Jeff Shaw June 13, 2019

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 …

June 13, 2019

Features Heartland Feature Archive Retail

Two New Tri-Land Investment Funds Hungry to Acquire Grocery-Anchored Retail Assets in Midwest, Southeast

by Kristin Harlow June 11, 2019

In today’s volatile retail real estate climate, there is ample need for redevelopment or value-add acquisitions. Tri-Land, a Chicago-based owner and operator, is one such company known for repositioning underperforming retail centers. Established in 1978, the company is launching two new investment funds beginning in July. The two funds — which combined total $30 million — seek to purchase between four and eight properties over a 30-month period. The strategy of the investment funds will be to acquire properties located in Midwest and Southeast markets, including Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Kansas City and Atlanta. More specifically, the funds will target grocery-anchored retail centers where the supermarket requires an on-site expansion, repositioning or relocation. During the past five years, Tri-Land has focused on the redevelopment of 10 legacy assets in Minneapolis, Kansas City, Indianapolis and Chicago. The company has sold each project upon completion of the redevelopment. This year, redevelopment of the 10 assets will be complete. This will enable Tri-Land to concentrate on new redevelopment opportunities. Against that backdrop, REBusinessOnline spoke with Richard Dube, the company’s president, at the ICSC RECon show in Las Vegas, which attracted more than 30,000 attendees. What follows is an edited transcript of the conversation. REBusinessOnline: …

June 11, 2019

Conference Coverage Features North Carolina South Carolina Southeast Southeast Feature Archive

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

by John Nelson June 6, 2019

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 …

June 6, 2019

Conference Coverage Features North Carolina Southeast Southeast Feature Archive

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

by John Nelson June 4, 2019

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 …

June 4, 2019

Features Mixed-Use Retail

ICSC Roundup: Developer Talks Construction Costs, Store Closures, Role of Mixed-Use

by Taylor Williams May 30, 2019

LAS VEGAS — Besides rampant store closures, one of the biggest challenges retail developers currently face is high construction costs. An ongoing labor shortage, higher prices on certain materials that have been tariffed, and the general impact of inflation have all driven costs of new development to historically high levels. That said, developers that play the long game and have the vision and resources to execute multiple uses are up for the challenge. Structured Development, a Chicago-based real estate firm that builds a variety of project types, but tends to specialize in retail and mixed-use, is an example of such a company. Jeff Berta, the company’s senior director of real estate, met with REBusinessOnline at this year’s ICSC RECon show in Las Vegas to discuss current trends within the retail sector and the challenges of executing mixed-use developments. Berta has held a number of positions in the real estate development, construction management and architecture fields. What follows is an edited transcript of the conversation. REBusinessOnline.com: Construction costs are very high right now and are making projects more difficult to pencil out. What’s the real story behind these rising costs as it pertains to developing a mixed-use project? Jeff Berta: There …

May 30, 2019

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