The Orange County office market continues to remain healthy with an unemployment rate of 2.6 percent in the second quarter of 2018. This is down from 3.2 percent 12 months prior. The driving industry sectors for Orange County that occupy a large portion of office space include financial services, information technology, logistics and healthcare. We are currently seeing vacancy rates around 11.7 percent, which is about a 10 basis point increase from the second quarter of this year. The main reason for this increase has been momentum in completed construction projects with more than 2.2 million square feet that has been delivered over the past 12 months. At the mid-year point of 2018, more than 808,000 square feet of office space was under construction — the majority of which was speculative. The largest office projects under construction right now include Flight at Tustin Legacy in Tustin and the Quad at Discovery Business Center in Irvine Spectrum. There are four Class A, institutional-quality office projects currently under construction in the county that total nearly 1.3 million square feet — 75 percent of which is pre-leased to tenants. All this bodes well for the continued confidence in the Orange County market. We …
Though Savannah by all standards is a small industrial market, you would never know it from the activity in the area. At 57 million square feet, the port city is poised to add an astounding 9.75 million square feet of inventory by mid-2019. The force behind all of this growth is attributed to one key factor: The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA). The GPA is an economic giant in Georgia supporting one of every 11 jobs in the state and accounting for 8 percent of its GDP. Home to the largest single-container terminal in North America, GPA moved more than 4.2 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) in fiscal year 2018, an 8 percent increase over 2017 and an all-time record for the port. With both CSX and Norfolk Southern on terminal, GPA also handled a record 435,000 rail lifts in FY 2018, which was a 16.1 percent increase over 2017. As the fastest growing port in the country, one might be concerned about congestion becoming an issue for the port, but reinvestment remains a top priority. The GPA recently opened its second inland port to move more containers toward population centers via CSX rail. It doesn’t hurt either that Savannah, geographically …
Houston continues its trajectory as an exemplary market with strong multifamily fundamentals that continue to attract large-scale investment nationwide. The positive trends of strong job growth and sustained apartment demand are forecast to hold thanks to a confluence of factors. To better understand the dynamics shaping Houston’s multifamily market, it is important to look closely at several major drivers, including residual demand from Hurricane Harvey and record employment growth, as well as the impact of rising interest rates and incentives introduced by the Opportunity Zone legislation. More than a year since Hurricane Harvey made landfall, Houston’s multifamily market continues to rebound. Overall occupancy has risen 180 basis points year over year to its current rate of 90 percent. Residents displaced by Harvey’s flooding, particularly in hard-hit areas like the Energy Corridor, contributed to the increased demand for apartments. In the third quarter of 2018 alone, absorption greatly outpaced deliveries, with almost 9,200 units newly occupied and less than 6,000 units delivered. As developers taper new apartment deliveries, we expect demand to continue to outpace deliveries for the foreseeable future. Rents advanced 3 percent between October of 2017 and 2018 — almost twice the rate of growth of the previous 12 months. …
The Greater Boston industrial market is busier than ever. Supply for quality warehouse and flex space is limited and the demand is at an unprecedented high. As a result, we have seen rents soar, achieving upwards of $7 to $7.50 Triple Net rent along I-495, and $9 to $11 Triple Net rent along Route 128, notable increases from just a few years ago. To coin a well-known quote from the 1989 film Field of Dreams, “If you build it, they will come,” and both investors and tenants continue flocking to the industrial real estate market in the Commonwealth, in some cases making their first appearance in Massachusetts, or in others looking to expand their presence here. Along with the usual suspects, we are seeing plenty of non-traditional industrial buyer groups as well as users who are now seeing the value in the region and asset class. While developers have experienced tremendous success to date with speculative builds, there are undoubtedly some potential risks on the horizon. Tenants are looking for clear heights exceeding 30 feet with as many loading docks as possible, a first-class inventory type that is far from common or plentiful in our marketplace. To accommodate changing tenant …
The industrial market in Orange County remains strong as demand continues to far outweigh supply. Vacancy throughout the region remains at historic lows, staying below 3 percent for the 13th consecutive quarter through the third quarter of this year. The largest submarket, North Orange County, is also the tightest submarket with a 1.2 percent overall vacancy. As an infill market, we do not anticipate significant increases in vacancy within the Orange County industrial marketplace for the foreseeable future, despite the new developments recently delivered, planned or under construction. There are several significant industrial development projects in various stages in the county. This is welcome news by users seeking to upgrade and expand into modern facilities while maintaining local operations. The first is a 30-acre redevelopment site in Huntington Beach that was purchased by Sares Regis Group earlier this year. Sares Regis is expected to begin construction shortly, with plans to deliver more than 600,000 square feet of new product in late 2019. Shea Properties recently began construction on Shea Business Center in Santa Ana, which is planned for nearly 530,000 square feet and a completion date in 2019. Western Realco is also nearing completion of Beckman Business Center, a 900,000-square-foot, …
The question today for office tenants and investors is not why Raleigh-Durham, but why not. The Raleigh-Durham market is defined by continued job growth and a thriving technology sector. The Triangle is enjoying significant rent growth, strong absorption and major construction that now has a Downtown Raleigh and a Downtown Durham. Raleigh-Durham’s overall growth continues and was recently ranked No. 1 in the Southeast in projected population growth, posting a 10.3 percent growth rate from 2017 to 2022. This figure is nearly double the 5.5 percent average growth rate for Southeastern cities. Job growth is the primary driver of the region’s expanding presence with over 30,000 jobs added in 2018 through the first half of the year, already surpassing the 24,000 jobs added in all of 2017. Over the last year, we have seen Infosys (2,000), Credit Suisse (1,200), LabCorp (400) and Ipreo (250) announce major job additions to the area. Most recently, Amazon announced 1,500 jobs that will be required for its new fulfillment center. The tech sector is a major contributor to those jobs, and there is a lot of talk about a well-known e-commerce giant and a major technology giant bringing a significant presence to our market. …
Like most major cities, Houston has had its fair share of market cycles. However, this most recent decline in the local economy’s growth rate that was caused by a steep drop of oil prices put a heightened level of stress on the Houston office market. Fortunately, the energy sector has turned the corner, and, paired with the ever-diversifying economic base, the Houston economy is buzzing again. As such, Houston’s population and job growth have translated into early signs of improvement in office market fundamentals. The metro’s employment base, which is currently seeing some of the highest employment numbers in history, is growing at more than twice the national rate. This rapid rate of expansion has provided the office market with much-needed positive momentum as we look toward the new year. Improving Fundamentals The much-anticipated turnaround in the office market is here. Asking rents, occupancy rates and absorption are all increasing across the metro area and across all building classifications. In the third quarter of 2018, the office market posted approximately 1.1 million square feet of positive net absorption. This is a significant improvement compared to the negative net absorption of roughly 1.1 million square feet in the first quarter of …
Last month I attended the NAI Global convention in Austin, Texas, and had the opportunity to talk with industrial real estate brokers from around the country. One thing was clear: there are many markets across the country that are facing the same dilemma as we are in West Michigan. The supply of vacant industrial buildings is at an all-time low, and construction costs are rising rapidly. Booming economy The manufacturing industry is extremely strong in West Michigan. Historically known for the automotive and furniture sectors, West Michigan has developed a strong presence in the medical device manufacturing, food processing and aerospace sectors. This diversity is a good indicator of stability for the West Michigan manufacturing sector for the foreseeable future. The strength of the economy has encouraged many companies to expand operations and has attracted numerous out-of-market companies to West Michigan. Low inventory The industrial vacancy rate in the greater Grand Rapids market is currently 1.6 percent, which is historically low. In order to provide some context, in 2012 the vacancy rate was 7.2 percent. Typically, when the vacancy rate is this low, it is a clear indicator that inventory is too low, and the construction of new buildings …
A combination of location and demand for e-commerce continues to drive industrial activity across New Jersey, spurring increased activity in the already robust northern and central regions of the state and driving a frenzy of activity in the south. Unlike some of the previous speculative booms, however, this one appears be carefully thought out and is likely to be sustainable. Northern and Central New Jersey We are seeing an enormous increase in the number of tenants interested in the market who face a limited supply. Across Northern and Central New Jersey, a record low vacancy rate of 3.4 percent is pushing rental rates to an all-time high despite a healthy but cautious building cycle. The region is an inherently attractive one, thanks to its proximity to New York City and Port Newark as well as the ability to reach 60-plus million people in the tri-state area in a matter of hours. Speculative development across North and Central New Jersey is ongoing, and we anticipate a number of legacy sites to be redeveloped during the next two- to five-year period. Of course, the 2008 recession remains on everyone’s mind. Accordingly, speculative velocity is not as robust as it was in previous …
The industrial market’s direct vacancy in greater Reno increased by 80 basis points to 4.53 percent at the end of the third quarter of 2018. It was carried by 715,821 square feet of positive net absorption, a relatively below average figure, as well as by an increase in new deliveries. Notwithstanding, pending transactions currently underway in the fourth quarter should mitigate the increase in the market’s overall vacancy. Tenant demand in the third quarter was robust for spaces with less than 50,000 square feet. Transactions that involved Class A space accounted for 84 percent of the total gross absorption. The North Valley was the best performer of all the submarkets, resulting in a 35 percent decrease in availability. The I-80/East submarket, however, recorded a substantially negative quarter due to deliveries/new availability pushing the vacancy to 12 percent. Sublease availability was static for yet another quarter, which demonstrates stability in the market. The average transaction size in Reno decreased slightly to 53,195 square feet. Heading into the fourth quarter, the market witnessed an increase in inquiries and tours involving more than 200,000 square feet. This gave existing landlords confidence that vacancies and new deliveries will be leased in the short term. …