Savannah’s industrial real estate market is experiencing exceptional growth and now totals 113.7 million square feet, of which 98.2 million square feet (86 percent) is dedicated to bulk distribution (tracking facilities sized 100,000 square feet or larger). Year-to-date net absorption as of the end of the second quarter was 6.3 million square feet, which suggests another solid year ahead. Additionally, the vacancy rate remains low at 4.6 percent, a historically favorable level. The development community has been quick to respond to robust demand, delivering 19 buildings totaling nearly 10 million square feet in the second quarter, with the majority of it already leased. The market is primed for additional growth, with a significant amount of new construction underway. More than 16 million square feet is currently under construction, not including the Hyundai plant that will span 17 million square feet itself, along with related supplier facilities covering an additional 1.9 million square feet as of this writing. The $5.5 billion Hyundai plant will employ 8,100 people and be the company’s first dedicated electric vehicle (EV) mass-production plant. It is expected to begin full production in early 2025 and will produce over 300,000 vehicles per year. The effects of Hyundai on …
Market Reports
Against the backdrop of rising interest rates, recent financial stress and murkiness over the Federal Reserve’s ultimate direction and economic implications, dealmaking in the first half of 2023 has remained exceedingly challenged across all real estate sectors as wide bid-ask spreads persist. However, compared to other spaces, rental housing in the Southeast remains relatively healthy from a fundamentals perspective, despite supply-driven softening in the near term. This trend is evident in many major markets, including cities like Atlanta. Occupancy and rent growth remain healthy in Atlanta. The rental vacancy rate for Atlanta as of January 2023 reached 5.4 percent, a 0.9 percent decrease over the previous year, based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau. This falls below the national average of 5.8 percent for the fourth quarter of 2022. The median rental rate in January 2023 was also up 4.3 percent year-over-year, reaching $1,941. Population growth, employment opportunities, infrastructure investments, a business-friendly environment and other demand drivers continue to intensify Atlanta’s need for housing; and long term, the outlook for rental housing in the metro is very strong. More than 6 million people now live in the region, according to recent Census data. The Atlanta Regional Commission predicts more …
Five blocks doesn’t seem that far. It’s about a quarter of a mile, or 560 steps. But, it’s just a hair past convenient for today’s office workers. Now more than ever, tenants are seeking an office experience that is dynamic and energized with amenities. They want great options for coffee, lunch or happy hour that are steps away, not blocks. If it’s not right outside the office, it’s not close enough. In Atlanta, the Midtown submarket is still where the action is. In 2022, Midtown had 775,652 square feet of positive absorption, which was the highest in the metro according to Cushman & Wakefield. In keeping with the flight-to-quality trend, Atlanta leasing activity last quarter was dominated by Class A product, which accounted for 75.6 percent of all transactions. Most of this activity occurred in Midtown. With a Walk Score of 87, Midtown is Atlanta’s most walkable submarket. But even there, it’s the vertically integrated office developments that bring a new layer of urban density that are rising above the rest. Not only are they seeing more leasing demand, but they are also experiencing a constant hum of activity and energy due to immediate access to great retail and restaurants. …
Atlanta has historically been a favorite metro for real estate investors to consider when it comes to a market that checks all the boxes. The Peach State Capital and its surrounding suburbs always have been a beneficial and desirable region for residents to live and work. Topping the list as the most popular city for apartment renters in 2022, Atlanta offers more benefits to its residents than just an affordable city to live. Other benefits of living in and around the city include professional sports teams, a rich arts and entertainment scene and renowned restaurant and retail lineups, among others. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport also offers domestic and international flights to practically anywhere in the world, and it’s situated minutes from downtown. Home to 17 Fortune 500 company headquarters, including prominent names such as The Home Depot, United Parcel Service (UPS), Coca-Cola and Delta Airlines, Atlanta’s job growth is outpacing the rest of the country. Coming out of the pandemic, Atlanta recorded a job growth rate of nearly 23 percent since April 2020, which outperforms the comparative U.S. metric of 11.7 percent in the same time period. Atlanta has also historically held an unemployment rate below the national average. With …
The Atlanta industrial market needs very little validation when it comes to answering the question “Why Atlanta?” More than a dozen companies started or based in Atlanta have grown over the past decade to valuations above $1 billion. Metro Atlanta had the second highest rate of job growth in the nation among large metro areas (6.7 percent), according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. So rather than ask “Why Atlanta,” the better question is “Where in Atlanta?” As the Southeast’s population continues to grow, the metro Atlanta area continues in equal parts to add density to its thriving urban core as well as expand its suburban reach. With limited geographic barriers to development, outlying towns are quickly becoming absorbed into the definition of the Atlanta area. This persistent growth is placing demand on industrial space at an all-time high, requiring a nuanced view of site selection within the Atlanta MSA. The four corners of the Atlanta market reach nearly 60 miles from the urban center in each direction along highways I-75 and I-85, with new speculative projects under construction as far out as Adairsville, Commerce, Locust Grove and La Grange. Its breadth now includes Bremen and Rutledge in either …
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Why Investors Should Love Atlanta’s Multifamily Market
by John Nelson
Like most of the country, the metro Atlanta multifamily market has experienced a dramatic storyline over the past three years. While the continuing plot twists are difficult to predict, important cues suggest Atlanta’s multifamily market will reestablish a solid upward path quicker than many other cities in the country. Economic strength Atlanta’s economic fundamentals make it a favored market for investors, lenders, new residents, and business relocations. Today, metro Atlanta’s population stands at approximately 6 million, growing by 64,940 in 2022. Atlanta also added 126,400 new jobs in 2022. Georgia’s unemployment rate of 3.1 percent is below the national average of 3.6 percent. These figures are a key part of Atlanta’s desirability as an investment market and an indicator of the region’s ability to rebound quickly from cyclical economic disruptions. Record volume Atlanta is a top 10 U.S. market for multifamily inventory and investment. As the nation experienced an 11-year economic expansion after the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), Atlanta’s multifamily sales volume averaged between $7 billion and $9 billion annually. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, most industry participants expected a major transaction pullback. The reality proved different. Sales volume dropped initially but rebounded sharply for a full-year 2020 …
As port authorities around the country invest billions of dollars in infrastructural improvements, industrial users are taking notice and looking for sites near all the action. In the Southeast, the elevated demand for new industrial space near the Port of Savannah and Port of Charleston is pushing the boundaries as far as what’s considered normal levels for property performance indicators such as new construction, rent growth and leasing activity. “It’s hard to say that anything is ‘normal’ right now — there are a lot of new phenomena out there,” says Robert Barrineau, senior vice president of CBRE’s Charleston office. “We are seeing nationally now that a tie to a seaport as being key for economic growth and for operational efficiencies for companies.” In one of the bigger announcements in 2022, Hyundai Motor Group chose a 3,000-acre site in Bryan County, which is close to both the Port of Savannah and Interstate 95, for its $5.5 billion manufacturing plant. Construction is already underway, and the facility should be operating at full capacity, which entails production of 300,000 units annually, by the first half of 2025. The South Korean automotive giant intends to use a combination of local labor and AI technology …
Atlanta’s prowess within the Sun Belt as the dominant multifamily market did not happen by accident, nor did it occur overnight. Back in the 2000s, Atlanta was still an emerging market that was working to attract new employers while battling a season of oversupply that hampered rent growth across the city’s numerous submarkets. Now, and since the mid-2010s, Atlanta has defined itself as the premier entry point for investors looking to break into the Sun Belt, and its proven track record ensures it will continue serving as a global magnet for relocation, investment and expansion. Atlanta’s diversified economy has attracted some of the nation’s biggest and best names in just a few years’ time. While Silicon Valley has captured the tech world’s eye for decades, global powerhouses such as Microsoft, Google and Meta (Facebook) have started planting their flags in Atlanta with reported goals of adding tens of thousands of highly paid employees by 2030. Tech companies are capitalizing on a strategic opportunity in Atlanta to broaden their workforce in a market that boasts a highly educated and diverse population while providing an attractive cost of living. With respect to Atlanta’s employment growth, the presence of Georgia Tech cannot go …
Like much of the rest of the country, the Atlanta multifamily market has been white-hot with strong occupancies and rent growth that is contributing to outsized returns for owners, investors and developers. Recent increases in financing costs does not mean the music is stopping, but the tempo is slowing a bit. Atlanta’s multifamily fundamentals are still outstanding. Occupancies are holding strong and rents are continuing to rise. According to Northmarq’s fourth-quarter 2021 research, occupancy improved by 90 basis points while asking rents spiked by 15.9 percent at year-end. The compelling story fueling investor interest — growing demand and limited supply of housing options — remains firmly in place. In addition, there is plenty of investor appetite and capital available for multifamily assets for both debt and equity financing. The big change that has occurred over the past several weeks is the increasing cost of debt that will likely take some of the edge off what has been an ultra-aggressive investment sales market. The 10-year Treasury was 1.73 percent on March 1, 2022. At the end of April, it was 2.91 percent, a 118-basis-point increase in less than two months. Additionally, lender spreads have widened over this same period — 30 …
Atlanta continues its streak as a high-growth market for retail. Low vacancy rates have turned up the competition for quality spaces among tenants and rents have continued to climb. Competition and a landlord’s market have sparked new trends as developers further refine their approach to finding retailers that drive traffic and retailers search for fertile and readily available locations, including submarkets outside the intown submarkets. Northeastern and West Coast brands have followed the trend of people moving to the Southeast, landing locations in suburban and exurban submarkets often filled with high-income, educated populations. As cities like Newnan, Cumming, Roswell, Woodstock, Peachtree City and Alpharetta see population density continue to grow, retail and restaurants are following. Suburbs and exurbs are also attracting urban dwellers from Atlanta seeking a quieter, yet similarly amenitized lifestyle they may have experienced closer to attractions like the Atlanta BeltLine. During the pandemic, people also got used to staying close to home and are now reluctant to drive far to take care of day-to-day needs and enjoy amenities, giving a boost to Ga. Highway 400 corridor developments like Avalon and Halcyon, as well as Ashley Park in Newnan. Unique offerings Hot trends emerging in Atlanta are “eatertainment,” …