Market Reports

New Retail Concepts Abound in Expanding Dallas-Fort Worth Market

by Taylor Williams June 23, 2017

It’s no secret retail vacancies in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area are at all-time lows. Vacancy rates at the end of first quarter 2017 were 4.6 percent, down from 5.5 percent a year ago, according to CoStar. More tenants are actively looking for the right spaces for their businesses so the retail sector is not overbuilt. Junior anchor tenants have “right-sized” requirements, thus decreasing their space needs. For example, Office Depot is downsizing its typical footprint from 24,000 square feet to 14,000 square feet. Grocery stores that have gone dark have been backfilled with fitness gyms, other grocers or entertainment-type tenants. In addition, market rents jumped markedly from $30 per square foot plus NNNs to $35 to $40 per square foot plus NNNs in the high demand spaces. In Class A retail environments such as the Frisco Mile, rates are $50 to $65 per square foot plus NNNs. Even in the new 99 Ranch Market space in Frisco, rents are $50 per square foot plus NNNs and the tenants are not blinking. Requests for higher finish-outs are continuing, but tenants are willing to pay these higher rents in order to use the landlords’ money for their improvements. Job and Housing …

June 23, 2017

Illinois Industrial Market Reports Midwest Midwest Market Reports

Priming Chicago’s Industrial Corridors For 21st Century Development

by Kristin Harlow June 22, 2017

As Chicago has emerged as one of the country’s top tech capitals, large parcels of land across the city -— many set aside for manufacturers that no longer do business there — have remained stuck in the past, serving as roadblocks to billions of dollars in new real estate development. That’s about to change thanks to a yearlong effort spearheaded by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the city’s Department of Planning and Development, which recently approved recommendations for modernizing the first of 26 industrial corridors across the city. The recommendations are the result of a community engagement process that solicited feedback from various stakeholders, including our firm and other real estate developers. The plan will pave the way for new residential and commercial projects throughout the North Branch Industrial Corridor, which stretches from Kinzie Street to just north of Fullerton Avenue along the Chicago River. These investments, which include much-needed infrastructure and open space initiatives, will engage the adjacent riverfront and create mixed-use environments. The early years In the 1980s, the city of Chicago designated a series of industrial corridors and Planned Manufacturing Districts (PMDs) — many along waterways and railways — to protect the city’s industrial base from encroachment by …

June 22, 2017

Industrial Market Reports Northeast Northeast Market Reports Rhode Island

The Changing Face of the Providence, Rhode Island Industrial Market

by Camren Skelton June 21, 2017

The latest CoStar Industrial Report for Providence reports that 2016 ended on a positive note on many fronts for the industrial real estate sector. The Providence industrial vacancy rate overall was down to 4.6 percent, a steady drop from 4.8 percent at the end of third quarter 2016, 5.3 percent at the end of second quarter 2016 and 6.4 percent at end of first quarter 2016. Flex projects showed a vacancy rate of 7.1 percent at end of fourth quarter 2016, a sharp drop from a rate that held largely steady for most of 2016 (11.4 percent for end of third quarter 2016, 11 percent at end of second and 11.5 percent at end of first quarter). For warehouse projects, the vacancy rate at the end of fourth quarter was just 4.4 percent, no change from end of third quarter, but down from 5 percent at end of second quarter and 6 percent at end of first quarter. It’s more good news for the state’s industrial outlook that the current administration has prioritized bringing businesses and jobs here. There’s evidence in the CoStar report to support that claim. Look at the third-largest lease signing of 2016. It was enacted by …

June 21, 2017

Colorado Market Reports Office Western Western Market Reports

Five Transformative Years Elevate Denver’s Office Market

by Camren Skelton June 20, 2017

The region is creating transformative projects that are substantially elevating the desirability of its office market five years into Denver’s strong development cycle. This trend — strongest in Denver’s Central Business District (CBD) and Southeast Suburban (SES) submarkets — is attracting a new breed of tenants to the Denver landscape. About 1.4 million square feet of Class A office space has been delivered in Denver’s CBD since 2012, with an equal amount under construction. Deliveries in the previous development cycles (1999 to2003 and 2007 to 2010) were on a smaller scale, delivering about 800,000 square feet and more than 1.5 million square feet, respectively. During the 2007 to 2010 development cycle, which had the unfortunate timing of commencing right before the financial crisis, new product struggled with pre-leasing. It took an average of 10 quarters to lease up to stabilized occupancy at 85 percent. Only one project, 1800 Larimer Street, was more than 85 percent leased in the first year. In contrast, the current cycle is much different and much stronger. The amount of square footage being added to the CBD outweighs the previous other two cycles. Leasing activity is white hot as well, with new product averaging 60 percent …

June 20, 2017

Alabama Industrial Market Reports Southeast Southeast Market Reports

Automotive Users Put Birmingham’s Industrial Market in the Fast Lane

by John Nelson June 19, 2017

When comparing Birmingham’s industrial market to other major cities in the Southeast, “The Tortoise and the Hare” comes to mind. Birmingham has had slow and steady progress — not to say that our sister cities have periods of laziness and napping. Birmingham’s current pace of activity is more the norm and thankfully the trends remain positive with 2016’s transaction numbers actually tilting in the direction of a “hare-like” pace. Occupancy rates for the 15 million-square-foot, multi-tenant industrial market eclipsed 90 percent for the first time since 2005. We had positive absorption of over 400,000 square feet with just under 1.5 million square feet of inventory remaining. During 2016, 12 new lease transactions of 50,000 square feet and larger were completed, eight of which were automotive related. These 12 transactions compare to seven and eight in 2014 and 2015, respectively, which is a strong increase. Leases of note include 270,600 square feet to a third-party logistics provider for Mercedes-Benz; 240,240 square feet to Grupo Antolin, a Spanish-based supplier of interior parts for Mercedes-Benz; and a 225,496-square-foot lease directly with Mercedes-Benz. Much of the remaining 1.5 million square feet of inventory is Class B or lower quality, so finding suitable space has …

June 19, 2017

Market Reports Office Texas Texas Market Reports

Dallas Office Market Opens 2017 With Accelerated Leasing, Absorption

by Taylor Williams June 16, 2017

Much like the overall U.S. economy, the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) office market is statistically trending upward and will experience continued growth in 2017 as indicated by first quarter numbers. Overall, the marketplace is experiencing sustained growth thanks to small- to medium-sized businesses expanding at a rapid rate, investors selectively chasing higher yields and market cores shifting to suburban areas. According to Stream’s first quarter 2017 data, the market experienced cautious growth in the latter half of 2016, with stagnations that are common during election years. Yet the report indicates 2017’s outlook is very promising. With 75 percent of the metro’s office markets posting a decrease in vacancy, we have much to look forward to over the remainder of the year. Only submarkets with heavy volumes of speculative office construction have not seen as much in the way of decreasing vacancies. Kicking off with a bang, the Dallas office market saw leasing activity ramp up dramatically to begin 2017. With quarter one in the books, we can project continued job growth, a robust local economy and heavy deal activity. Noteworthy Dallas Developments Similar to 2016, buildings that primarily focus on improving parking availability and walkable retail options will have the best …

June 16, 2017

Illinois Market Reports Midwest Midwest Market Reports Office

Strong Tenant Demand Continues to Propel Chicago’s Office Market

by Kristin Harlow June 15, 2017

In spite of the ongoing fiscal woes of the State of Illinois and City of Chicago, the downtown office market in the Windy City continues to experience solid growth in demand for quality office space. The first quarter of 2017 saw net absorption of 374,000 square feet, a 54 percent increase from the 243,000 square feet of net absorption recorded during the first quarter of 2016. This comes on the heels of a spike in supply in the central business district (CBD) of Chicago, with the opening of two new Class A office towers during the past two quarters: 150 North Riverside Plaza and 444 West Lake Street, developed by Riverside Investment & Development Co. and Hines Interests, respectively. These trophy assets added 2.4 million square feet of office space to the CBD. With these additions, Chicago’s office inventory in the CBD expanded from 132.6 million square feet in the first quarter of 2016 to 135 million square feet in the first quarter of 2017. Two additional towers under construction now at 151 N. Franklin Street and 625 W. Adams Street will open in the next 12 months, adding an additional 1.3 million square feet to the supply and bringing …

June 15, 2017

Market Reports Northeast Northeast Market Reports Pennsylvania Retail

Redevelopment Drives Much of the Retail Story in Pittsburgh

by Camren Skelton June 14, 2017

Pittsburgh retail can be summed up in three words: location, location, location — and the original definition of great real estate has never been more pronounced than it is today in the Pittsburgh retail market. According to some publications, retail and retailers appear to be struggling almost everywhere for many different reasons, including online sales, too many stores, market conditions and oversaturation of product. However, as of year-end 2016, CoStar indicated that the overall Pittsburgh retail market occupancy rate was 96.8 percent. Pittsburgh has natural barriers to entry for retail due to its topography, which includes numerous hills and valleys, making it often times impossible to build a “newer, bigger, better” retail property across the street. As a result, many developers have successfully repurposed older centers through adaptive reuse, converting them in keeping with the latest and greatest retail trends. Other older centers have successfully withstood the test of time, replacing outdated retail concepts with today’s current concepts at significantly lower costs than building a new center. Adaptive reuse of Pittsburgh retail started decades ago when the May Company relocated Kaufmann’s Department Stores from four freestanding locations into the dominant regional malls, leaving one- and two-story 200,000-square-foot boxes vacant. Local …

June 14, 2017

Market Reports New Mexico Office Western Western Market Reports

Albuquerque’s Office Market Struggles to Recover

by Camren Skelton June 13, 2017

The New Mexico office market heart is found in Albuquerque. During the first quarter of 2017, the Albuquerque office market has seen an increase in activity from local companies looking for newer and updated spaces, but not necessarily more space. The office market has been the last to see any type of recovery after the recession. The vacancy rate remains steady at about 21 percent. Continuing through 2017, we anticipate moderately positive absorption. Albuquerque remains over-built and under-demolished, with many office buildings being functionally obsolete. Other than two new, build-to-suit medical buildings, one being 43,000 square feet and the other being 90,000 square feet, there are not any planned speculative office buildings. State Farm recently announced it will vacate 35,000 square feet and move its call center operations to Arizona. A multi-market, healthcare administration office has downsized from 67,000 square feet to about 25,000 square feet. These shifts will yield two properties with large contiguous spaces, an excellent opportunity for tenants with large space requirements. However, there are fewer opportunities for those looking for updated spaces. There are currently less than 10 modern office buildings for lease or sale. As such, modern Class A office buildings continue to have high …

June 13, 2017

Alabama Market Reports Office Southeast Southeast Market Reports

Consistency, Young Talent Lead to High Expectations for Birmingham Office Market

by John Nelson June 12, 2017

For the first time in quite a while, the Birmingham office market has experienced a rejuvenation and resurgence, catered around growth, a diversification of the tenant base and an effort to attract and retain bright young minds. Like many markets nationally, the city’s focus on urban renewal has made downtown Birmingham an attractive place to live, work and play, and thus will help companies attract talent to the market. Birmingham has entered a new era of industry and residential growth with one of the Southeast’s most dynamic markets after evolving from a historically steel and manufacturing-focused economy. Driven by a new generation of local leaders who have focused on developing biotechnology, life sciences and automotive sectors as catalysts for growth, Birmingham has witnessed a remarkable economic transformation. A preference for dynamic locations to live, work and play is occurring in Birmingham, as a significant amount of development has taken place in downtown Birmingham. While the bulk of this activity is occurring on the multifamily side, the same factors that draw people to live downtown are expected to positively impact the desire of employees to work downtown. In the long run, it is reasonable to expect office development to take off …

June 12, 2017

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