Texas Market Reports

Transforming San Antonio: Opportunities for Greener, Healthier Urban Development in Rising Cities

by Taylor Williams November 4, 2020

By Cameron Kraus, technical designer at Gensler The future of the city is in flux. Many of us have been and continue to work from home as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic altering our perceptions and expectations of what it means to live in an urban environment. According to insights from the Gensler Research Institute’s City Pulse Survey, which aims to capture people’s changing attitudes during this time, many people, particularly those with young families, may be growing tired of big city life. This is due in large part to ongoing affordability issues, but also to increasing concerns about health and wellness. The survey also found that nearly half of our respondents still want to live in an urban environment. Many said they want to leave high-density, high-cost cities for more affordable, smaller ones like San Antonio, as these cities still offer a broad range of amenities with a lower cost of living. Reintroducing The 20-Minute City As we examine our cities with fresh eyes, we have a unique opportunity to rethink how we define and connect our neighborhoods. Cities such as Barcelona, London and Paris are looking to create “20-minute cities,” a concept based on early 20th century …

November 4, 2020

Industrial Market Reports Texas Texas Market Reports

Industrial Growth Comes Full Circle in Texas-Arkansas Border Region

by Taylor Williams October 29, 2020

By Eric Voyles, executive vice president, TexAmericas Center Years before smartphones and decades before Zoom, community leaders along the Texas-Arkansas border decided to turn a shuttered military property into a regional economic driver. Now, with the boost of a technological revolution that makes it easier than ever to connect with companies worldwide, that venture is paying major dividends. Located in the Texarkana MSA, TexAmericas Center (TAC) is an industrial park with a unique twist — it’s run by a special purpose district of the State of Texas. That means it operates like a government, controlling its own zoning and permitting processes, but it also functions like a competitive real estate development company. This combination has been particularly attractive to relocating and expanding businesses over the years and continues to drive growth for the greater Texarkana economy. Companies considering relocation or expansion at TAC frequently comment on the variety of infrastructure updates made to the industrial park. They are also quick to appreciate an impressive transportation corridor that uses multiple state highways, interstates, air freight and rail lines to disperse from a central U.S. location. But what new companies don’t always realize just how deep the supply of skilled workers is, and …

October 29, 2020

Industrial Market Reports Self-Storage Texas Texas Market Reports

Self-Storage Resists Recession Yet Again

by Taylor Williams October 16, 2020

By Taylor Williams As commercial property types go, self-storage is considered one of the toughest to sink in times of economic hardship. As Texas and the United States enter the eighth full month of the COVID-19 pandemic, this quality is beginning to show through. Natural disasters like floods and hurricanes tend to be windfalls for the asset class, as displacement from homes and damage to commercial properties raise short-term demand for self-storage. A pandemic does not have quite the same effect on the property type, especially when residential landlords in the United States are legally barred from evicting tenants. But for the major self-storage markets of Texas, COVID-19 has generated some positive results. COVID’s impact on self-storage is somewhat similar to Hurricane Harvey’s impact on the Houston multifamily market in 2017, which was also overbuilt and saw an overnight boost in occupancy as a result of the storm cutting into supply. In essence, COVID-19 has served as a mechanism to bring supply-demand balances closer to equilibrium. Because prior to the pandemic, the development pipelines in the major cities of Texas were peaking, creating oversupplied markets that were defined by sluggish rent growth, concessions and high levels of competitions for new …

October 16, 2020

Market Reports Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

Central Texas Retail Investment Market Heats Up

by Taylor Williams October 13, 2020

By Brad Bailey, first vice president, CBRE; Adam Rabin, associate, CBRE; and Logan Reichle, vice president, CBRE It’s no secret that across the United States, the retail investment community has had to shift and adapt in several ways due to the ongoing pandemic. In addition, retail owners have had to make quick assessments of their strategies for asset management, usually on a property-by-property basis. For the first part of the pandemic, the commercial real estate industry was primarily reactive and in crisis mode. However, seven months into it, the indication is that this is something that will be around for the foreseeable future. As such, investors are moving out of their reactive modes and beginning to implement offensive strategies to identify and secure strong retail real estate investments. There are a number of key reasons that these investors are honing in on Central Texas retail: Suburban vs Downtown Good retail locations are hard to come by in Austin. We estimate that investment demand will rebound for space recently vacated. In high-quality locations, don’t expect too much of a change on rental rates. For some Austin submarkets like Cedar Park and Lakeway, we may see rates adjust slightly as vacancy rises. …

October 13, 2020

Conference Coverage Market Reports Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

Houston Restaurant Market Embraces Creativity Amid Pandemic, Says Exclusive Webinar Panel

by Taylor Williams October 7, 2020

Landlords, users and brokers throughout the Houston retail market are re-tooling their properties and operating practices to stay afloat amid the COVID-19 pandemic, introducing ways of doing business that may persist long after the public health crisis has subsided. A panel comprising retail leasing, development and investment sales professionals in Houston convened on Tuesday, Oct. 6 to discuss specific ideas and methodologies that have been put into practice as COVID-19 rocks the world of brick-and-mortar retail. Shopping Center Business and Texas Real Estate Business, two magazines published by Atlanta-based France Media Inc., hosted the event. Prior to the pandemic, social events that activated open public spaces helped landlords to promote their tenants’ businesses and to bring traffic to their centers. With public health protocols precluding many of these events from happening, owners and tenants alike have had to think outside the box. New Practices Sustain Business No retail category has seen this trend displayed more visibly than the restaurant sector. Emily Durham, partner and director of hospitality services at Waterman Steele Real Estate Advisors and a longtime tenant rep specialist for restaurant owners, identified several new practices that have helped restaurants stay above water. “The sit-down and fine dining restaurants have had the …

October 7, 2020

Development Market Reports Multifamily Texas Texas Market Reports

Texas Multifamily Developers, Architects Improvise

by Taylor Williams September 10, 2020

By Taylor Williams The sudden merging of a healthy pipeline of multifamily product in Texas with a global pandemic that has caused a drastic increase in working from home is forcing apartment builders and designers to get exceedingly creative with all facets of their projects. Unit interiors and common areas of apartment buildings must now provide makeshift workspaces for adults across a wide range of industries, as well as for the preexisting members of the gig economy and for children who have been forced to engage in virtual learning. Working from home is just one of many lifestyle changes that COVID-19 has brought about in the last six months. Multifamily developers and architects are tasked with trying to judge the staying power of these changes and to find balances between implementing features that promote safety and wellness without busting their budgets. “We know we have to adapt to COVID-19 and be proactive,” says Yewande Fapohunda, senior vice president at High Street Residential, the residential subsidiary of Trammell Crow Co. “Lifestyles and behaviors are rapidly changing, and though we don’t know how long they’ll last, we have to think short- and long-term with our reactions.” It’s a tricky process to say …

September 10, 2020

Market Reports Multifamily Texas Texas Market Reports

Texas Lenders Express Optimism for Second Half

by Taylor Williams August 12, 2020

By Taylor Williams Decreased acquisition activity across virtually all asset classes is among the most visible impacts that COVID-19 has had on commercial real estate, but capital markets professionals say there’s reason to believe deal volume will rebound sharply toward the end of the year. According to data from Real Capital Analytics (RCA), the total sales volume of commercial properties in the country was approximately $44.7 billion during the second quarter. This figure represents a staggering year-over-year decrease of 68 percent and the lowest quarterly total in more than a decade. In terms of income streams, some asset classes are faring much better than others. Social distancing mandates and stay-at-home orders, while disastrous for retail and hotel properties, have elevated demand for e-commerce, as well as manufacturing of essential goods and services. The latter trend ensures that for many industrial owners, rent collection is not a major concern. But current and future economic uncertainty are causing investors across the board to pause new acquisitions. “We saw a significant decline in demand for acquisition financing when the pandemic began,” says Jeff Erxleben, executive vice president and regional managing director of NorthMarq’s Dallas office. “There were major unknown factors coming in all …

August 12, 2020

Industrial Market Reports Multifamily Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

What’s Up Next For San Antonio?

by Taylor Williams July 17, 2020

Interviews conducted by Taylor Williams During the 10-year expansionary cycle, San Antonio posted one of the highest rates of population growth in the country, bringing new development of luxury apartment communities, modernized e-commerce facilities, bustling entertainment destinations and a landmark Class A office building. While some short- and long-term pain from COVID-19 is inevitable, there is also some optimism on the horizon. Industrial broker Cody Woodland of NAI Partners, multifamily developer David Lynd of LYND Co. and retail investment sales specialists Kevin Catalani and Price Onken of CBRE share thoughts on what’s happened and what’s coming in the Alamo City. Texas Real Estate Business: In terms of your sector, what have you seen in the San Antonio market in response to COVID-19? Cody Woodland: Much like other industrial markets, we’ve seen many tenants put their requirements on hold, including some sizable leases near execution. Most of these resulted in short-term extensions that should resurface in 2021. We’ve also seen numerous deals with essential users requiring immediate short-term space for storage purposes due to fluctuations in supply chains, primarily in the grocery and medical product sectors. Even during the pandemic, some long-term leases have still transacted, such as Dollar General’s 285,000-square-foot …

July 17, 2020

Market Reports Oklahoma Retail Texas Texas Market Reports

Far North Oklahoma City Retail Market Hits Its Stride

by Taylor Williams July 14, 2020

By Stuart Graham, Senior Vice President, CBRE; Mark Inman, Senior Vice President, CBRE; and Kendra Roberts, Associate, CBRE The Oklahoma City retail market has had a growing and changing landscape over the past few years as the sector’s healthy fundamentals continue to draw both local and national investors. Although much of the growth has been focused on the downtown Oklahoma City area, we are beginning to see a new hotspot emerge in the Far North neighborhoods. High-quality schools and affordable housing in the Far North Oklahoma City submarket of Edmond, as well as in the surrounding neighborhoods, have been major draws for young families. Both the Deer Creek and Edmond School Districts rank among the top three school districts in the state and also enjoy high national rankings. As a result of these residential and educational features that are attracting younger households and driving population growth, the Far North Oklahoma City submarket has recently seen a significant uptick in both retail investment and development activity that better support this underserved and growing community. To illustrate this submarket’s rise, consider the fact that nearly 20 percent of the total volume of retail product currently under construction in the Oklahoma City area …

July 14, 2020

Market Reports Multifamily Texas Texas Market Reports

McAllen Multifamily Market Shows Positive Rent Growth Amid COVID-19

by Taylor Williams July 10, 2020

By Brad Frisby, Associate, NAI Rio Grande Valley The McAllen-Edinburg-Mission MSA’s multifamily market has posted positive rent growth for the first half of 2020, despite the outbreak of COVID-19 causing nationwide job losses and impacting landlords’ ability to push rents during much of that time. The combined effect of a stimulus package for renters and pandemic legislation that bans evicting residents who cannot pay due to COVID-19-related job losses has largely kept occupancy rates steady throughout the first half of the year. Occupancy rates for Class B and C product rose to the mid-90s, but absorption at Class A properties has taken a small dip. As construction — and economic activity in general — resumes at a greater pace in the second half of the year, we expect new deliveries to come on line and bring the marketwide occupancy rate down slightly. As of May, the McAllen area had added about 500 new apartments to its supply, with an additional 700 or so set to be delivered by year’s end. The North McAllen, Edinburg and Weslaco submarkets will receive the bulk of new deliveries this year. Over half of the new units delivered will be through the Texas …

July 10, 2020

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