Market Reports

Atlanta’s Industrial Market Continues Historic Pace of Sales, Leasing Activity

by John Nelson January 11, 2016

Atlanta’s industrial market is hotter than the proverbial pistol. Second-quarter activity set a single-quarter record with more than 18.2 million square feet leased or sold. When added to the activity from the previous three quarters, Atlanta strung together more than 59.6 million square feet of completed transactions. This represents the second highest activity level ever recorded for a four-quarter period. There was more than 6.3 million square feet of positive net absorption. Combined with the previous three quarters, Atlanta shows a total of more than 19.7 million square feet of positive net absorption for the last four quarters. For the second quarter, the availability rate dropped one-tenth of a percent to 14 percent — the lowest it has been since the fourth quarter of 2000. And just four to five years ago, the overall availability rate was above 20 percent. Development and construction are absolutely booming. With more than 7 million square feet of new construction recorded during the second quarter, the market also set a record for new construction in a single quarter. When looking at the four-quarter total, we see more than 18.8 million square feet of new construction — a level not seen since 1998. Of that …

January 11, 2016

Industrial Market Reports Multifamily Office Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

Strong Economic Growth Continues in Waco

by Haisten Willis January 8, 2016

Greater Waco’s economy is on a roll. Positioned halfway between Dallas and Austin, Waco is a prime destination for companies and individuals wanting access to large metro areas without the hassles of traffic, expensive real estate and labor shortages. With newly completed facilities such as Baylor University’s McLane Stadium and major downtown redevelopment projects, Waco is hitting the radar for new development opportunities. October 2015 marked 43 months of positive economic growth for the area, with 4.8 percent growth in the third quarter of 2015 alone. Major organizations, including Baylor, continue to aid in elevating the status of Waco as a dominant player in the Central Texas region. Just as Texas has seen significant growth since 2008, so too has Waco. One major contributor to Waco’s economic success has been employment growth. Employers are creating new jobs in the area, with 1,600 more positions now in place, 113,700 compared to 112,100 in October 2014. Construction, manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality and logistics remain strong drivers for the economy. The result is a community with a 4.8 percent unemployment rate and residents with more disposable income. In fact, real median household income for the Waco MSA grew 5.8 percent, to $43,184, between the …

January 8, 2016

Market Reports Midwest Midwest Market Reports Missouri Retail

IKEA Leads Retail Development in St. Louis

by Christina Cannon January 7, 2016

Without question 2015 was a “great year” for the St. Louis retail market, says Adam Glosier, senior vice president with Colliers International. “New users entered the market and few vacated. The St. Louis retail landscape benefitted from the continued expansion of organic grocers, sporting goods operators, quick service restaurants and soft goods retailers.” At the end of the third quarter, the vacancy rate stood at 7.1 percent, unchanged from the prior quarter but down from 8.2 percent a year earlier, according to CoStar Group. Net absorption totaled 579,206 square feet during the third quarter, bringing the year-to-date total to just under 900,000 square feet. Six new retail buildings were delivered in the third quarter, which collectively brought 612,595 square feet to the market. The gross leasable area (GLA) of the 29 buildings under construction at the end of the third quarter totaled 915,751 square feet. “There was a lot of activity in 2015 in the freestanding and small retailer market, as well as activity from junior anchors,” says Christopher Zoellner, senior vice president of retail with Balke Brown Transwestern. “This has created strong activity and a good pipeline going into 2016.” IKEA Makes ‘Big Splash’ A few retailers opening new …

January 7, 2016

Kentucky Market Reports Retail Southeast Southeast Market Reports

Major Infrastructure Projects Will Benefit Louisville’s Two-State Retail Market

by John Nelson January 4, 2016

The retail market for Louisville has continued to improve over the past year. New ground-up developments, which have been virtually nonexistent the past five years, are now open for business. Vacancy rates are falling, new tenants are entering the market, and retail investment sales continue to be in high demand. The $2.5 billion Louisville- Southern Indiana Ohio River bridges project is on track for a 2016 opening. New developments in downtown and northeast Louisville, as well as Southern Indiana, are looking to capitalize on the new infrastructure. GBT Realty is looking to expand its presence in the market with a proposed 220,000-square-foot joint venture project across the river in Jeffersonville, Ind. The site is located within in the 170-acre master-planned Jefferson Town Center on Veterans Parkway. Menards is opening a new 200,000-square-foot property this fall across the street from GBT’s proposed development. In addition to GBT Realty’s newly opened Middletown Commons and Jefferson Commons in Louisville, the three projects are from developments that were planned before the Great Recession and now have new life. The Outlet Shoppes of the Bluegrass, located in Simpsonville, Ky., has been a major success since opening in late 2014. After just six months, an expansion …

January 4, 2016

Market Reports Massachusetts Multifamily Northeast Northeast Market Reports

Despite Naysaying, Boston Remains Attractive to Millennials and Developers

by Jaime Lackey December 30, 2015

Despite the clichés and naysayers, Boston’s apartment fundamentals continue to trend at the top of U.S. cities’ forecasts. For developers, investors and borrowers, Boston truly is that city on a hill. Clichés heard often in the commercial real estate community: Interest rates have no place to go but up. Who is going to pay $4.50-per-square-foot rents? Wait until the next wave of units is delivered. Valuation and yield don’t make sense. The facts: Economists have been predicting interest rate increases for the past five years. Market vacancy has been sub-5 percent for more than five years. Every major apartment player owns or is currently building in Boston, averaging $1.2 billion in product for past three years. Boston is a premier gateway city and buyers want in. The Investor Outlook Simplified When cap rates for the most desired real estate class — in a gateway city, in the safest country for investment in the world — average 4.25 percent, it’s a great time to invest. The 2006 cap rates were just 100 basis points above the 10-year risk-free rate. Today they are 2.0 to 2.25 percent. Half of the deals are cash transactions. Locals can only shake their heads at the …

December 30, 2015

Kentucky Market Reports Retail Southeast Southeast Market Reports

Louisville Sees Wealth of Retail Leasing, Development Activity Across Metro Area

by John Nelson December 28, 2015

Louisville’s retail market continues to experience a shortage of space in high-demand markets in spite of several new developments opening over the past year. During this period, two major retail developments have been completed with several smaller projects under construction or in the planning stages. Second-generation big box vacancy is virtually non-existent and finding quality shop space is becoming equally challenging. As a result, rents have escalated to historic highs. The most notable additions to the Louisville market are two neighborhood centers developed by Brentwood, Tenn.-based GBT Realty Corp. Nestled amongst a rapidly expanding residential community and PGA’s notable Valhalla Golf Club in eastern Louisville, the 240,000-square-foot Middletown Commons is anchored by Hobby Lobby, Academy Sports + Outdoor, Ross Dress for Less and Liquor Barn. Jefferson Commons, located in south Louisville, is anchored by Academy Sports + Outdoor, Hancock Fabrics, HH Gregg, Michael’s, Liquor Barn and several fast-casual restaurant concepts. In western Louisville, BC Wood Properties added Hobby Lobby and Goody’s stores at the 350,000-square foot Dixie Manor Shopping Center. Southwest of the city’s central business district, the redevelopment of Dixie Valley Shopping Center expanded its footprint to include additional soft goods retailers such as Marshalls, Ross Dress for Less, …

December 28, 2015

Market Reports Massachusetts Northeast Northeast Market Reports Office

Construction Completions Drive Boston Office Boom

by Jaime Lackey December 23, 2015

In what was the most dynamic quarter since the dot-com boom in 2000, tenants in Greater Boston absorbed 2 million square feet of office space in the second quarter of 2015. The activity was driven by a number of high-profile construction completions throughout both the urban and suburban areas of the market. The Boston CBD experienced its ninth straight strong quarter with 861,000 square feet absorbed. Notably the activity occurred mostly outside of the boundaries of the “Big 3” Boston submarkets of Back Bay, Seaport District and Financial District (though the latter did absorb 290,000 square feet in its own right). North Station saw a major bump in occupancy with the completion of Converse’s 230,000-square-foot headquarters, causing the submarket’s largest quarterly absorption number on record. Move-ins by Sonos and Safari Books Online added 200,000 square feet of absorption in Midtown, where vacancy has dropped to nearly half of what it was a year ago after State Street’s departure. And development continues at Boston Landing, where the 245,000-square-foot second phase is currently under construction and is already partially pre-leased to the Boston Bruins. Space continues to be scarce in Cambridge, where vacancy is just 5.8 percent and availability is at an …

December 23, 2015

Kentucky Market Reports Multifamily Southeast Southeast Market Reports

Louisville Multifamily Rents, Occupancy Maintain Forward Momentum

by John Nelson December 21, 2015

The Louisville multifamily market has consistently demonstrated strong, favorable market fundamentals, which has drawn significant interest in this growing riverfront city. Since 2010, the market has seen 19.8 percent rent growth and continually posted occupancy gains. This momentum resulted in a record amount of multifamily transactions in 2014 and continues to fuel investor demand today. This momentum in the multifamily sector is happening not only in Louisville, but across the U.S., according to CBRE Research. Overall demand for rental housing continues to be driven by demographic-led household formation and a deepening preference for rental vs. owner tenure. Supply continues to grow briskly and rent and revenue growth are accelerating. Additionally, a recent CBRE multifamily study found that the national homeownership rate is 63.4 percent — its lowest level since 1967. The report also discovered that the national rent growth has reached its strongest year-over-year gain in nine years. And we don’t expect this trend to level off anytime soon. During the first half of 2015, the Louisville market demonstrated strong fundamentals with increasing rents and occupancy. Between 2014 and 2015, the annual market-wide rent growth was 3.4 percent, bringing the average rent to $786, or $0.86 per square foot. The …

December 21, 2015

Market Reports Multifamily Texas Texas Market Reports

Dallas: A Market with Multifamily Staying Power

by Haisten Willis December 18, 2015

Right now, the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan statistical area is one of the hottest multifamily markets in the country with an eye-opening 34,000-plus units currently under construction. Long-term trends suggest that even if construction slows somewhat, demand for north Texas apartments will outstrip supply for the foreseeable future. The reason is straightforward. Dallas has much going for it that employers find extremely appealing, including a central location equidistant from both coasts, an educated workforce, a diverse economy and a favorable business climate. These underlying advantages are simply not going to change. In the last three years, a number of companies, including Toyota North America and Nationstar Mortgage, have relocated their headquarters to Dallas-Fort Worth, while others, like Southwest Airlines and AT&T, have added thousands of positions to their headquarters. Most recently, American Airlines announced plans to create a corporate campus west of its current location near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Dallas-Fort Worth has also become a popular site for regional corporate centers. State Farm is constructing a 2 million-square-foot campus on Dallas’s main north-south light rail line in suburban Richardson. When it is completed in 2016, the company will have more than 5,000 employees in north Texas. Liberty Mutual announced this …

December 18, 2015

Market Reports Midwest Midwest Market Reports Office Uncategorized Wisconsin

Downtown Milwaukee Continues Its Hot Streak, but Will It Cool in 2016?

by Christina Cannon December 17, 2015

The long-held perception of the Milwaukee office market is that it mostly trades tenants between buildings with one landlord winning at the other’s expense, while the overall pie remains the same size. However, with cranes dotting the horizon, large blocks of vacant space quickly leasing up, a number of major new developments waiting to break ground, and the inflow of outside dollars into Milwaukee, the market has recently experienced some amazing deal velocity. This activity is expected to continue as we head into 2016. However, the office market could slow down due to the completion of several projects currently under construction. The greater Milwaukee office vacancy rate stood at 15.5 percent in the third quarter, down slightly from 15.6 percent in the third quarter of 2014. The vacancy rate in the central business district (CBD) dropped from 16.2 percent to 14.9 percent during the same period. Meanwhile, rental rates have increased slightly in both the overall market and the CBD. Cranes in the skies Construction on the Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons began in late 2014 in downtown Milwaukee and is scheduled for completion in late 2017. A 32-story office tower will adjoin a two-block-long, three-story space known as The Commons. The new development …

December 17, 2015

Newer Posts

Older Posts