Features

NIC: Seniors Housing Occupancy Inched Upward in First Quarter

by Alex Tostado April 18, 2019

ANNAPOLIS, MD. — The occupancy rate for seniors housing across the United States climbed slightly to 88.1 percent in the first quarter of 2019, according to the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), a nonprofit organization that provides research and analytics to the seniors housing industry. Occupancy increased 10 basis points from the previous quarter and decreased 20 basis points from one year ago. Occupancy for the first quarter of 2019 was 210 basis points below its most recent high of 90.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014. “Occupancy in seniors housing properties remained stable nationally but varied greatly from market to market,” says Chuck Harry, NIC’s head of research and analytics. “Local markets can vary due to changes in local economic performance, barriers to entry such as zoning and regulations, shifting demographics, and other factors.” Of the 31 metropolitan areas that comprise NIC’s primary markets, the highest first-quarter U.S. occupancy rates occurred in San Jose (94.1 percent) and San Diego (92.2 percent). The lowest first-quarter occupancy rates were in Houston, TX (77.1 percent) and San Antonio (77.4 percent). NIC data show the largest occupancy increase from a year ago occurred in Las Vegas (from 86 …

April 18, 2019

How Office Owners Can Help Lower Sky-High Property Tax Assessments

by Kristin Harlow April 16, 2019

Managing fixed expenses is the best way to ensure the long-term profitability of investment properties, especially in a flat market. The largest continuing expense for most commercial properties is the property tax bill, and in a market with skyline-defining properties and headline-grabbing sales prices, tax assessors have multi-tenant office properties in the crosshairs. Any reduction in tax burden can drastically improve an investment’s profitability, competitiveness and tenant retention. As another assessment season begins across the Midwest, understanding tax assessors’ common errors can equip property managers and owners with the tools necessary to review the accuracy and reasonableness of the assessments on their office properties and, when appropriate, challenge those assessments. Know the relevant market To an outsider, the office market can appear monolithic. To such people, rent, occupancy and other income characteristics of office properties are consistent throughout the market. But pulling data from the wrong market can lead assessors to an incorrect result. For example, assessors may assume that Class A downtown office towers are the best-performing assets in the market, and value them accordingly. Contrary to this perception, though, Class A properties may not outperform all Class B or Class C properties, and downtown may not be the …

April 16, 2019

Conference Coverage Features Multifamily Student Housing

InterFace Student Housing Panel Talks Living-Learning Communities, Investment Trends

by Alex Tostado April 11, 2019

AUSTIN, TEXAS — The concept of living-learning communities, wherein students take advantage of a property’s location and amenities to share academic and personal experiences, is growing in popularity in the student housing industry. As the property sector matures and more student housing communities become outdated, developers are finding success with new projects that capture both the living and learning sides of the college experience. This trend is visible at both on- and off-campus properties. The subject of living-learning communities was raised during the opening Power Panel at the 2019 Interface Student Housing Conference. The three-day event, which took place from April 8-10 at the JW Marriott Hotel in Austin, Texas, drew approximately 1,400 attendees. Bill Bayless, CEO of American Campus Communities (ACC), an Austin-based REIT, kicked off the discussion of living-learning communities by noting that, in general, America’s inventory of student housing product is aging, and not like a fine wine. “The average age of on-campus housing at universities across the United States is 53 years old,” said Bayless. “What continues to be one of the greatest opportunities in the space is the replacement of outdated on-campus student housing with living-learning communities on campus that are fully immersive.” Bayless was joined …

April 11, 2019

Features Retail

Hiring Spree by Some Retailers Shows It’s Not All Gloom and Doom for Sector

by Alex Tostado April 11, 2019

Although the retail sector remains under pressure — evident by the spate of store closures and announcements since the start of the year — the job losses across the industry have not been severe, says Ken McCarthy, principal economist and senior managing director at Cushman & Wakefield. In fact, some retailers are in an aggressive hiring mode. Total employment in the U.S. retail industry has increased by 1.4 million jobs since 2010, according to McCarthy, who was quick to add that the sector has shed approximately 140,000 jobs over the past two years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports a net loss of 11,700 retail jobs in March, which came on the heels of a revised loss of 18,500 jobs in February. (The retail numbers from the BLS exclude restaurants.) “Store types that have seen substantial job losses include those that are most vulnerable to competition from the e-commerce industry, including electronics and appliances, sporting goods, apparel and accessories, and more recently general merchandise stores,” explains McCarthy. “While we would not characterize the job losses as that severe, those store types and product types that are most vulnerable to e-commerce are likely to remain under pressure.” According to Challenger, …

April 11, 2019

Features

CCIM Economist Analyzes Job Gains in March, Plus Interest Rate Outlook

by Alex Tostado April 9, 2019

After a subpar jobs report in February, one might say that the U.S. employment market came into March like a lamb but went out like a lion. Employers added 196,000 jobs in March, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), with notable gains in healthcare and in professional and technical services. The headline number was a big improvement over the 33,000 jobs added in February and brought the longest streak of employment growth on record to 102 months. More specifically, the healthcare sector added 49,000 jobs in March and 398,000 over the past 12 months. Employment in professional and technical services grew by 34,000 in March and 311,000 over the past year. The leisure and hospitality sector also fared well in March by adding 33,000 jobs. Meanwhile, the national unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.8 percent. REBusinessOnline.com caught up with K.C. Conway, chief economist at the CCIM Institute, for his take on the health of the economy, its impact on commercial real estate and what he thinks might be the Federal Reserve’s next move on interest rates. What follows is an edited version of Conway’s remarks: REBusinessOnline: Do you subscribe to the takeaway expressed by some pundits that the …

April 9, 2019

Content Partner Features Self-Storage

The Stability of Self-Storage

by Taylor Williams April 5, 2019

Through economic ebbs and flows, the self-storage sector continues to prove its strength. Although real estate industry players are wary about labeling any sector as recession-proof, the self-storage sector tends to be a stable asset class during economic booms and downturns, according to Paul Letourneau, manager of commercial real estate lending with Chicago-based Alliant Credit Union. And over the last decade, self-storage facilities have become more flexible spaces, which is driving greater demand for the product. Across the country, these facilities are being used in novel ways, such as short-term product warehousing for small businesses; incubator space; personal workspaces; and wine storage in climate-controlled units. These new uses, coupled with traditional storage needs, create increasing demand and stability in the self-storage sector. According to Letourneau, self-storage facilities have adjusted to urban environments and their residents’ needs with multi-story climate-controlled properties that feature customer lounges and high-tech monitoring and security systems. Meanwhile, suburban markets show greater demand for traditional single-story self-storage facilities with space for RV and vehicle storage. However many suburban facilities are adding climate-controlled units and more security to meet customers’ needs. “The bottom line is that customers — from baby boomers and millennials to small business owners — …

April 5, 2019

Features Retail

Retail Vacancy Holds Steady Through First Quarter Despite More Store Closures

by Taylor Williams April 4, 2019

NEW YORK CITY — The national retail vacancy rate stood at 10.2 percent at the end of the first quarter of 2019, unchanged from the previous period and up 20 basis from the first quarter of 2018, according to New York-based commercial real estate analytics firm Reis. The report was based on analysis of the company’s internal information on retail properties in 77 American metros. The average asking rent for U.S. retail space closed the quarter at $21.30 per square foot, up 1.6 percent from a year ago, per the report. Net absorption for the opening quarter was 949,000 square feet, which represents a small decline from that period in 2018. However, the report notes that a slower pace of new construction has helped offset occupancy dips brought on by brick-and-mortar store closures. Less than a million square feet of new product was delivered during the first quarter of 2019. In the first quarter of 2018, the volume of new deliveries was more than double that figure, and in the fourth quarter of 2018, supply additions nearly tripled that number. Reis projects that new construction will ramp up as the year unfolds, with the total U.S. retail inventory projected to …

April 4, 2019

Features Hospitality

Hotel Industry Growth Continues, Labor Shortage a Concern, Says Industry Researcher

by Taylor Williams April 2, 2019

ATLANTA — The hotel industry is still setting records. According to Jan Freitag, senior vice president of Tennessee-based STR, United States hotels in 2018 had the highest availability, most sales and the highest average daily rate (ADR) ever recorded. The total inventory of rooms available was up 2.1 percent in February year-over-year, the first time in history that the annual pace of supply growth has exceeded 2 percent, Freitag said. Freitag presented the research during the 31st annual Hunter Hotel Investment Conference, which was held from March 20 to 22 at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in the city’s downtown area. The conference drew approximately 1,850 attendees. STR found that in 107 out of the past 108 months, the industry has posted an increase in revenue per available room (RevPAR). The lone exception was September 2018, a month Freitag called an anomaly. Although hotel revenue continues to grow, there is a large chunk of travelers around the world that the U.S. is missing out on due partially to the exchange rates that don’t favor travelers from developing countries, says Freitag. More people are traveling than ever before, backed by greater leisure spending among the emerging middle classes of India and China. …

April 2, 2019

Features Georgia Hospitality Southeast Southeast Feature Archive

Hunter Conference Recap: Hospitality Industry’s Run on Soft Brands Will be ‘Limited,’ Say Lodging Executives

by John Nelson March 28, 2019

ATLANTA — Somewhere between a branded hotel like Holiday Inn and a truly independent hotel lies the “soft-branded” hotel. These properties are pseudo-independent in that they don’t adhere to hotel brand standards but their owners can tap into the networks of established chains for resources like reservation software, loyalty programs and distribution channels. Owners franchise the hotel properties for a fee, but the operations and look more resemble an independent hotel, which is an attractive concept given how many travelers are looking for authentic experiences from their hotel stays. “Soft brands are the hot product in the hotel industry,” said Jeff Higley, vice president and editorial director of Hotel News Now/STR Global. Higley’s comments came during the 31st annual Hunter Hotel Investment Conference, which was held March 20-22 at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta. The conference drew 1,850 attendees. Higley moderated a panel on the first day of the event that included executives from hotel brands and hospitality ownership and development firms. Evolution of soft brands According to lodging research and analytics firm STR, soft-branded hotels comprise a little more than 1.3 percent of all U.S. hotel rooms, but that figure is significant in that 11 years the …

March 28, 2019

California Features Lument Multifamily RED Capital Group Western

RED: California’s Southland Economy Loses Steam but Apartment Performance and Property Markets Strengthen; Cap Rates Decline

by Jaime Lackey March 27, 2019

Since the Baby Boom generation was in its infancy, Southern California has represented the apex of American popular culture, with its freedom, fun and limitless opportunity. But in the last few years the Southland’s place in the American imagination has been superseded to a degree by the digital prowess of its Bay Area and Pacific Northwest neighbors. Recently, the tide has begun to turn. While still wildly successful economically and culturally influential, the Bay Area, Seattle and Portland seem to be bumping into resource constraints that have dimmed their luster. By contrast, the Southland has found its stride, attracting increasing amounts of venture capital, building powerful digital and biotech platforms and proving a bit more adept than the cities to the north at finding space to facilitate economic and population growth. Venture capitalist Peter Thiel hasn’t been the only titan to notice. The impact on multifamily markets is palpable. Property sales volume records were shattered last year and cap rates fell to historic lows. Investors are increasingly embracing the value-add strategies popularized in lower-cost growth markets, driving prices of aging Class B garden properties higher and fueling faster rent growth in submarkets where the renter-by-necessity tenant predominates. Although increased supply …

March 27, 2019

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