John Ramous, Nevada region partner at Dermody Properties, discusses how the southern part of the state’s various regions have evolved into industrial hubs — and what the firm is doing to capitalize on this. WREB: What is it about Las Vegas and its fundamentals that have made it an ideal place for industrial? Ramous: There are several key fundamentals driving Las Vegas’ — or Southern Nevada’s — growth as a comprehensive industrial and regional logistics hub. It’s strategically located near Southern California and other major West Coast markets, maintains a business and tax-friendly environment, has a supportive infrastructure, a streamlined permitting process, a focus on sustainability and a large, talented workforce with competitive labor costs. All these factors make this region an ideal place for industrial and logistics, as well as a very attractive location to work, live and conduct business. WREB: Can you tell me more about your Apex project? Ramous: Apex Industrial Park is becoming a primary center for larger and scalable logistics facilities, advanced manufacturing, technology and other distribution uses. Located in North Las Vegas off Interstate 15, it is luring major companies to the region, benefiting the entire Southern Nevada market. Trucks are arriving full …
Market Reports
— By Greg Tassi, vice chair, and Jason Griffis, senior director, Cushman & Wakefield — Southern Nevada continues to distinguish itself through economic diversity. Sports and entertainment, along with a robust industrial real estate market, play a key role in keeping Las Vegas relevant. Formula 1 Racing, the MSG Sphere, MLB’s Athletics and recent discussions around a potential NBA expansion team add to the local excitement. Meanwhile, a compelling industrial real estate market continues to attract and retain globally recognized businesses. The industrial segment in the Las Vegas Valley remains a safe bet for national developers and institutional capital partners, many of which have a healthy appetite to either enter the market or expand their holdings. Land scarcity is the primary barrier to entry for new groups entering the market. Infill sites have become increasingly scarce with very few parcels of more than five acres suitable for industrial development. The bulk of the new inventory will continue to push to the periphery of the Valley, including Sloan and Jean to the south, El Dorado Valley to the southeast and Apex to the north — home to Prologis’ recent 879-acre purchase. Henderson’s recently annexed El Dorado Valley attracted attention with a …
— By Jason Dittenber, Senior Vice President, ABI Multifamily — Las Vegas has attracted residents and real estate investors from around the world with its legendary nightlife, favorable climate and affordable living. In the post-COVID era, the multifamily market in Las Vegas has undergone significant changes. The city has seen a resurgence in an economy heavily reliant on tourism, but challenges persist. They include the current lending environment, increasing operational and construction costs, increased vacancy rates and declining rental rates. These factors have influenced developers and investors in the multifamily sector, creating opportunities and obstacles. Developers like Matter, Southern Land Co. and Grand Canyon Development Partners are helping to change the city’s multifamily dynamic by contributing to its economic and social advancements. Their innovation spans job creation, community development and sustainability initiatives. Moreover, their mixed-use properties foster business expansion, enhancing the city’s commercial landscape and key employment drivers. The Las Vegas MSA witnessed the delivery of 3,318 units in 2023, surpassing the five-year average of 3,069 units. The large number of new multifamily completions has created a more tenant-friendly market. Rental rates have softened but remain relatively high compared to average incomes. Over the past five years, rental rates surged …
— By Geoffrey West, Senior Vice President, Investment Property Sales and Acquisitions, MDL Group/CORFAC International — The Las Vegas retail market remains a tale of two cities with the tourism-driven Resort Corridor and surrounding MSA comprising two very different markets. In the past, the stories of the “cities” were somewhat divergent with robust development, premium rents, and top-tier restaurant, bar, entertainment and retail tenants dominating in the Resort Corridor. In contrast, the primarily suburban MSA experienced decreasing rental growth rates, metered new development and fewer exciting new tenants. However, looking at the past and current years, as well as into 2025, it appears the party isn’t just on the Las Vegas Strip anymore. Due in part to a statistical undersupply, the suburban Las Vegas retail market is poised to experience increasing rental growth rates over the next 12 to 18 months. The lack of new supply is expected to put continued upward pressure on retail leasing rates and downward pressure on vacancy rates, which are expected to be nearing record 2007 levels. Economic Summary The Las Vegas market saw the completion of more than $8 billion in development in 2023. Among these are the $3.9 billion, 3,644-room Fontainebleau Las Vegas, …
— By Jason Hallahan, associate, Colliers — Northern Nevada’s office market remained resilient throughout last year in the face of strong headwinds. Reno’s office market saw a blend of market fundamentals as net absorption declined, investment activity slowed and available sublease space shrunk. Negative net absorption in three out of four quarters brought the annual total to nearly 23,000 square feet of negative absorption — the lowest the market has seen since 2020. Vacancy ticked up 100 basis points year over year to 11 percent by the end of 2023, though it is well below the pandemic peak of 13.4 percent of mid-2020. Average direct asking rents also softened slightly this year, though tenant demand and asking rates both remain strong among Class A office product. A combination of growing vacancy, heightened interest rates and continued uncertainty in office space needs have curbed investor appetite this year. Demand for Reno office product fell sharply at the beginning of 2023 when first-quarter sales shrank to less than 20 percent of the average quarterly sale totals from the past three years. Buyers and sellers struggled to reach a middle ground as elevated vacancies weakened sale prices and increased borrowing costs discouraged investors. There …
— By Benjamin Galles, senior vice president, CBRE — The outlook for the Reno multifamily market in 2024 is similar to how the year panned out in 2023. There is significant interest in Reno from investors across asset types, earning us a ranking on Business Insider’s list of the top 15 hottest real estate markets for the next decade. Northern Nevada’s continued job growth has piqued investors’ interest in owning multifamily properties within the state. This growth will continue as existing companies expand their presence in the market, proving their commitment to the city and people of Northern Nevada. The current elevated construction costs and construction loan costs could pose a roadblock to developers meeting the anticipated demand in the next 12 to 24 months. That being said, there are currently 4,700 apartment units under construction in the market. This will likely be absorbed by people moving into Reno from outside the region. Unlike other markets we’ve seen across the country, very few loans in our region have maturities over the next 12 months. This means seller motivation in Reno remains low to moderate when it comes to offloading properties. The lack of debt events where owners will be pressed into a …
— By Mike Ballard, Partner, Ascent Multifamily Accounting in Las Vegas — Las Vegas — known for its vibrant entertainment scene and thriving real estate market — is experiencing the early signs of a recession. With one of the most substantial construction forecasts in the nation, the Las Vegas multifamily real estate sector is poised to witness a surge in supply with 8,000 units to come online by 2025, according to Avison Young. However, despite the anticipated surge in deliveries, the Las Vegas market has seen fewer construction starts this year. We can anticipate that the Valley will once again have a shortage of rental housing in 2025 and 2026, which will increase rents and cause concessions to evaporate. It is also anticipated that up to 10 percent of commercial real estate within the Valley may face foreclosure in the next 18 months. The city is currently experiencing one of the highest rates of foreclosure in the country, with nearly one in every 1,800 homes experiencing foreclosure. This can be attributed to high interest rates and the prospect of a recession forming a dark cloud over the nation’s real estate market. According to CoStar, quarterly multifamily sales volume has yet to eclipse $150 million in 2023. The surge in supply is also …
— By Jeffrey Swinger, Executive Vice President | Las Vegas, Multifamily Investment Sales, Colliers — Las Vegas is on a roll right now, continuing to raise the bar year after year, and we are bullish on the long-term outlook of Southern Nevada’s future. UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research predicts that Southern Nevada’s population will gain 41,900 new residents in 2023 and increase another 2.4 percent in 2024. This wave of growth, coupled with strong local economic activity and enhanced infrastructure investments, has created more jobs and more demand for housing. With more than $8.12 billion of new major projects delivered in 2023, there is another $2 billion currently under construction with plans to deliver in 2024 and 2025. Additionally, there is another $17.25 billion of announced and proposed projects keeping Las Vegas’s momentum moving forward. Significant projects that were delivered in 2023 include the Fontainebleau, the MSG Sphere and the inaugural Formula 1 Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix. The Fontainebleau is the latest hotel/casino along the Strip, valued at $3.7 billion, and will add 3,644 rooms to the hotel inventory count. The MSG Sphere is Las Vegas’s newest entertainment venue featuring the largest spherical building in the …
— By Paul Sweetland, SIOR, Vice Chairman, Colliers Doherty Industrial Group — Throughout 2023 we were often asked if the Las Vegas industrial market had “missed the memo” on the slowdown since other western markets were experiencing a slowdown that we had yet to see. With record under-construction numbers and net absorption numbers being on pace to finish the year with the second highest total of the last five years, Las Vegas didn’t appear to be slowing down. However, there are certain sectors that show initial signs of a pending change. Land Sales: Land sale transactions have seen a 75 percent drop from the prior year. Peak land pricing was $36.00 per land square foot in the summer of 2022, and by the fourth quarter of 2023 it had dropped 25 to 35 percent as demonstrated in the limited closings that occurred. Although lease rates continued to increase, developer underwriting had seen significant changes in exit CAP rates along with debt, equity and construction financing due to an unstable interest rate environment with the Feds continued rate increases at the fastest pace in 40 years. Lower land pricing or significant lease rate increases are going to be necessary for the …
— By Tad Loran, Vice President, Retail Specialist, Avison Young | Western Alliance Commercial Inc. — The Northern Nevada retail sector has made quite a comeback post-pandemic as both the population and job market expand. The retail vacancy rate ended last year at 4.7 percent and increased 20 basis points to a current level of 4.9 percent, while market rent increased from $1.70 to $1.83 on a monthly basis for the same period. South Virginia, Meadowood, South Reno and the North Valleys are all recipients of a thriving market. Tenants that have recently entered the region or are expanding in Northern Nevada include Petco, Panera Bread, Colombia Sportswear, Voodoo Brewing Company, the Human Bean, Starbucks, Cracker Barrel, Mountain Mike Pizza, Take 5 Oil Change, AutoZone and Five Below. Tenants with recent closures include Bed Bath & Beyond, Lucky Brand Jeans, Tuesday Morning, Steak ‘n Shake, Sizzler Steakhouse and Claim Jumper. Unemployment in Nevada increased to 4.4 percent in July 2023 from 3.5 percent in December 2022. Even though there was an increase, this continued low unemployment rate has created a challenging labor market with employers lacking the necessary labor pool to grow. Unfortunately, this shortage has led to some prospective new businesses …