Market Reports

Strong Economy Propels Lubbock Multifamily Market Despite Uptick in Concessions

by Taylor Williams September 24, 2019

It’s an exciting time to be living in Lubbock, Texas. The amazing smells of Evie Mae’s Beef Ribs fill the air. McPherson, llano Estacado and English Wineries are producing gold medal wines, on point with anywhere in the country. The Texas Tech men’s basketball team was 30 seconds away from a national championship; the men’s track team won the NCAA Championship; and the Red Raiders’ Meat Judging Team continued its dominant reign. Winning has infected the community culture, translating into a strong local economy. Things are great for the local consumer, but how is that playing out for multifamily investors? Here, the message is mixed. We will begin by discussing the Lubbock economy as a whole, then the key numbers for the Lubbock multifamily market, followed by a general discussion. Economic Outlook The Lubbock economy continues to perform at record levels. Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the city’s unemployment rate in June was 3.2 percent. As amazing as this number is, it actually represents an increase from the unemployment experienced in the two previous months. Over the last 12 months, the Lubbock economy added an estimated 2,000 new jobs. Per the Lubbock National Bank Economic Report, some of the …

September 24, 2019

Industrial Market Reports Texas Texas Market Reports

Case Study: Dallas vs. Houston Industrial

by Taylor Williams September 20, 2019

The Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) and Houston metro areas have vastly different opportunities and challenges in terms of commercial real estate. Yet this year both have both landed in the top five in the nation for industrial development. Driven by strong population and job growth, DFW and Houston don’t expect their industrial expansions to slow down any time soon. At the end of the second quarter, DFW was No. 2 in the country in industrial development behind California’s Inland Empire, with 30.3 million square feet of space under construction, according to Cushman & Wakefield research. Houston ranked fourth with 18.1 million square feet. Record Construction in Dallas Dallas’ industrial market has enjoyed strong positive momentum throughout 2019, thanks in large part to a steady stream of new residents and job opportunities. DFW’s population grew by 128,500 people year-over-year, an average of 350 new residents every day. The metroplex also gained 97,000 jobs over the previous year. Moody’s Analytics reported that 25 percent of those new positions were in the industrial market. The leading indicators of industrial demand are trade, transportation and utilities jobs, which account for nearly 75 percent of all industrial jobs in DFW. Unemployment has edged downward to 3.4 …

September 20, 2019

Market Reports Texas Texas Market Reports

For Clients’ Sake, Technology Must Be Used in Tandem With Critical, Creative Thinking

by Taylor Williams September 17, 2019

There are now dozens of commercial real estate platforms and apps on the market today that are designed to assist brokers in their day-to-day activities, and many are quite good. However, any technology should primarily serve to enhance how brokers serve their clients and not direct how that service is provided. Too often, the process a technology lays down may actually become a stumbling block in the way of creating the most economical and beneficial transaction for a client. Overreliance on Tech By way of explanation, let’s start with a simple example. You’re at any checkout counter. The cashier rings up your order and the register shows that you owe $13.42. You hand over $20. Suddenly, for some unknown reason, the cash register screen goes blank. And then the cashier’s face goes blank, too. Making change the old-fashioned way is simply no longer taught, because technology has taken the place of thinking through the problem. A comparable scenario could happen if brokers rely solely on what a commercial real estate platform tells them to do. Wrapped up in completing the formula and following a detailed path, there may seem to be no room for creative thinking. But in fact, that …

September 17, 2019

Market Reports Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

New Tenant Mixes Drive Retail Redevelopments

by Taylor Williams September 10, 2019

A persistent need for a tenant mix that is resistant to e-commerce and which facilitates a unique, authentic experience is prompting owners of older retail centers and malls to assume high levels of risk and redevelop their properties. While there can be a plethora of non-tenant-related factors that spur redevelopment projects — the basic need to charge higher rents, the structural and aesthetic deterioration over time, a desire to restore a public perception of vibrancy — the ultimate success of almost every retail redevelopment project hinges on the tenancy. For shopping centers, this typically entails adding more restaurant users and other retail categories that offer a critical service or a unique shopping experience, as well as integrating open recreational spaces. For malls, adding entertainment uses is becoming increasingly important, particularly when an anchor space has been vacated or sold back to the owner. When paired with a telltale sign like sluggish sales and/or negative rent growth, any of the aforementioned factors can be the catalyst for pulling the trigger on a redevelopment project. But whatever the impetus for the project, without marketing to and leasing tenants that can afford market-rate rents, align with the surrounding demographics and drive foot traffic throughout …

September 10, 2019

Industrial Market Reports Self-Storage Texas Texas Market Reports

Texas Self-Storage Markets Respond to Saturation

by Taylor Williams September 6, 2019

Developers of self-storage properties in major Texas cities are consciously putting the brakes on new construction as they wait for excess supply to be absorbed and for positive rent growth to return to the market. The market has been moving in this direction for some time. While property owners have generally maintained occupancy rates that meet pro forma thresholds for profitability, rent growth has been and will likely remain stunted. Supply growth has led to competitors cannibalizing each other’s market shares. In addition, ever-rising construction costs and a dwindling inventory of buildable sites are also governing the pace of new self-storage development. While certain pockets of developable sites still exist here and there, lenders and equity providers have also taken note of the saturated landscape and are tightening their purse strings for self-storage projects. “With respect to major markets, there’s no question that the pipeline is thinning out, and for projects that haven’t yet started construction, probably half of those proposed won’t come to fruition during this cycle,” says Bill Brownfield, owner of Brownfield & Associates, the Houston-based branch of industry-tracking firm Argus Self-Storage. “Markets are largely stabilized in terms of occupancy. But rent concessions and discounts have not only …

September 6, 2019

Market Reports Multifamily Texas Texas Market Reports

Up To the Challenge: Dallas Apartment Market Absorbs Record Levels of New Supply

by Taylor Williams September 2, 2019

In 2019, Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) once again represents the nation’s top metro for job creation and net migration. These market conditions are occurring at an opportune time as more than 26,000 multifamily units have been completed throughout the market this year, marking a record wave of annual deliveries. This influx of new apartments will increase the metro’s rental inventory by 3.3 percent, yet robust demand for new supply allows net absorption to match delivery volume, lowering overall vacancy by 20 basis points. Prolonged Absorption Over the past three years ending in June, DFW’s apartment stock expanded by 10 percent, or 74,000 units, yet vacancy adjusted moderately during this period. Unit availability hovered in the high-4 to high-5 percent range, with demand supported by the creation of 400,000 jobs, robust in-migration and the widening gap between a monthly mortgage payment and average rent. The extended period of strong leasing velocity was highlighted by the second quarter of 2019, when a record 12,000 apartments were absorbed. Performance during this three-month stretch lowered vacancy by 90 basis points on a quarter-over-quarter basis. With employment growth slated to further improve during the second half of this year — the result of corporate relocations and …

September 2, 2019

Industrial Market Reports Texas Texas Market Reports

Diverse Mix of Industries Propels Dallas Industrial Market to New Heights

by Taylor Williams August 30, 2019

Until about six years ago, the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) industrial market was considered a second-tier market, lagging behind the likes of New York-New Jersey, Chicago and Los Angeles in terms of investor interest and demand. Today, the metroplex is not only holding its own with the traditional gateway markets, but in some cases surpassing them, thanks to growth from an exceptionally diverse group of tenants and industries. Natural population growth throughout North Texas has prompted stronger demand for industrial space across a range of user bases: e-commerce, global logistics, consumer products, building materials, pharmaceuticals, food, furniture, aviation. Some notable, six-figure leases that have been executed in the metroplex over the last 12 months and which reflect the diversity of tenant demand — as well as the geographic range of submarkets seeing strong activity — include the following: Smuckers (1.1 million square feet in south Dallas), furniture provider Steelcase (618,000 square feet in Carrollton), marketing firm Taylor Communications (232,000 square feet in south Dallas), ITW Food Equipment (184,000 square feet in Fort Worth), Alliance Glazing (137,000 square feet in Garland), Panoramic Doors (127,500 square feet in Fort Worth) and CEVA Logistics U.S. (100,000 square feet in Coppell). As these deals illustrate, …

August 30, 2019

Market Reports Office Texas Texas Market Reports

Dallas Office Market Grows Its Share of Tech Firms

by Taylor Williams August 27, 2019

While Austin is the Texas city that has become most synonymous with a tech-heavy office market over the last decade, the remarkable amount of overall job growth in the metroplex is allowing Dallas to slowly grab a larger piece of the tech pie. While some of the fastest-growing tech firms in the market right now — Google, Facebook, Indeed — have committed to larger office footprints in Austin, many of these firms still retain offices in Dallas due to its strong supply of qualified labor and relatively cheaper cost of doing business. However, in addition to having offices in Dallas, these firms have contributed to commercial real estate growth in the metroplex through build-to-suit data center developments and large colocation leases with established data center operators in the market. Facebook’s $1 billion data center development in Fort Worth is among the largest in the country, and construction recently began on Google’s $600 million data center campus in the southern suburb of Midlothian. IBM SoftLayer, Rackspace, and LinkedIn are other examples of technology firms taking large data center leases in the Dallas metroplex, North America’s third-largest data center market, according to 2019 figures from DataCenter Hawk. Outside of the context of …

August 27, 2019

Market Reports Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

Investor Demand Accelerates for Dallas Metro Retail Assets

by Taylor Williams August 23, 2019

The Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) economy is booming with tremendous population, income and job growth trajectories that directly benefit the local retail sector. Shopping center investors have taken notice, as evidenced by the total transaction volume for retail properties during the last 12 months reaching its highest level in more than 10 years. Compelling Fundamentals Investors continue to buy retail properties in Dallas as a result of DFW’s healthy and diversified economy. Population growth and in-migration patterns are significant factors with more people moving to DFW last year than any other metro area in the nation (246 people arriving daily), according to recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau. This surge has pushed DFW’s population to more than 7.5 million residents. Additionally, employment growth has exploded, with DFW leading the nation in job creation last year by adding 116,400 jobs. The Dallas metro unemployment rate has recently dropped to 3 percent, which is the lowest rate in 20 years, and this has further contributed to powerful employment dynamics that continue to fuel consumer retail spending. DFW was also recently ranked as the No. 5 market in the nation for technology jobs, which typically are higher-paying and will add strength to an …

August 23, 2019

Market Reports Office Texas Texas Market Reports

As Users Flock to Quality Space, Houston Office Owners Focus on “Ecosystems”

by Taylor Williams July 26, 2019

If industry professionals, particularly developers and landlords, don’t make educated attempts to understand the mindsets of their tenants, they have little hope of advancing the dialogue and ultimately furthering their understanding of tenant decision-making. Take the Houston office market, for example, and its inventory of approximately 330 million square feet, according to CoStar Group. This market has experienced rising vacancy and declining rents throughout the four-year oil slump, but continues to see strong tenant demand in the Class A space. To this end, CoStar reports that there are still nearly 3 million square feet of new office projects under construction throughout metro Houston, the vast majority of which is Class A product. The high proportion of Class A deliveries is partially attributable to rising land and construction costs that mandate heftier rent projections. But still, there’s no question that Houston’s growth in certain employment sectors — healthcare, technology, financial services — ensures that many of the jobs being created in the city need to be paired with high-quality office space. Understanding and explaining the actions of the thousands of companies that commit to millions of square feet of office space is a case-by-case endeavor. But as markets of this size …

July 26, 2019

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