Houston has long been characterized by its energy presence, earning titles such as “The Energy Capital of the World” and the “Petro Metro.” The American drilling renaissance has brought about significant changes on a national and international scale, and the boom is projected to be sustainable for decades. As a result, energy companies are shifting operations back to the U.S. Houston is at the heart of the American oil industry, and as companies grow and expand their footprint in the U.S., the Houston office market is positioned to experience significant growth. The economic impact of the shale boom has been felt throughout Texas. The Eagle Ford Shale, one of the most significant oil and gas plays in the country, spans 14 producing counties and had an economic impact of $46 billion in 2012. Surrounding cities, such as San Antonio and Corpus Christi, are experiencing growth in all product types to accommodate the population and employment gains in the region. Midland has become one of the most expensive places in Texas thanks to the Permian Basin, while the Dallas/Fort Worth metro area, with the Barnett Shale in its backyard, continuously tops various economic health indices. But Houston, home to 87,418 headquarters, …
Texas Market Reports
As Houston As Houston continues to create jobs and power the economic engine of Texas, every segment of the multifamily sector continues to push higher. With more than 100,000 jobs added in the past year alone, the newly hired and the job-hungry are leasing up available space in Houston faster than units are being delivered to the market. Demographics demonstrate a growing shift toward rentals for the city in general. For the first time since 2005, Houston apartment occupancy is averaging more than 90 percent. As the energy, medical, service and construction industries continue to expand in Houston, demand will remain strong across the board for Class A, B and C product. New multifamily construction is heavily concentrated within the Inner Loop, Energy Corridor and the vicinity of The Woodlands. The development pipeline trends toward these job-ready markets as Houstonians dream of shorter work commutes and “live, work and play” scenarios. Multifamily options inch toward this dream, providing retail, dining and entertainment options on property or nearby. But living the dream does not come cheap. While convenience is desirable, these benefits can be packaged at a steep price. Houstonians, however, are more than willing to pay premium prices for premium …
The Houston metro retail market is attracting retailers and investors from across the world because of its booming economy and impressive job growth, primarily in the energy and healthcare sectors. Since 2012, Houston’s local employment has grown, on average, around 4 percent year over year. As developers continue building and leasing large office and medical developments, notably in The Woodlands and Energy Corridor, retail space has been and will continue to be in high demand. ExxonMobil is currently developing its 385-acre campus near the intersection of Interstate 45 and the Hardy Toll Road in The Woodlands. The development alone has more than 3,000 workers on site every day. With completion slated for 2015, nearly 10,000 workers will re-locate to the campus from the Houston area, as well as from Virginia and Ohio. Another notable development recently announced is ConocoPhillips’ 850,000-square-foot lease of Trammell Crow’s Energy Center Three and Four in the Energy Corridor. Energy Center Three, with expected occupancy in the second quarter of 2015, and Energy Center Four, with expected delivery in the second quarter of 2016, will house approximately 2,100 employees in the submarket. In addition to ConocoPhillips, The University of Texas MD Anderson recently acquired approximately 35 …
The top 10 fastest growing subdivisions in San Antonio had a combined 1,832 housing starts in fourth quarter 2012, according to a recent report from housing-market research firm Metrostudy. And that number is already up with 2,042 new home starts in first quarter 2013, a 24.3 percent increase over the same time period last year. So far, builders are on track to build 8,478 homes this year, as major markets in Texas continues to outperform the nation. Alamo Ranch is the bright star in the bunch. Statistics solidly place this northwest subdivision in the top spot of San Antonio’s fastest growing subdivisions with 649 new housing starts in fourth quarter 2012. Bulverde Village, in second place, saw 169 new home starts during the same time. April single-family home sales rose 14 percent over last year and 4.5 percent from last month, according to the San Antonio Board of Realtors. In keeping with the boost in housing, retail is showing solid, if slow, growth. San Antonio retail occupancy rates increased for the fourth consecutive quarter, reaching 94.5 percent in first quarter 2013. And while rental rates remain fairly flat, according to research from Delta Associates, the second half of 2013 is …
The Dallas/Fort Worth industrial market has performed very well during the past three years. Healthy market fundamentals have created an environment in DFW that is highly conducive for robust growth, though the sluggish national economic recovery will cause some volatility in the pace of that growth. Strong job gains, an expanding position as a global distribution hub and local market confidence are all characteristics driving industrial market performance. The warehouse/distribution sector drove demand in the DFW industrial market during the first quarter of 2013, with flex space also in demand. Net absorption of industrial space across the Metroplex totaled 1.3 million square feet during the first quarter of 2013, with warehouse/distribution product accounting for 62 percent of the space taken. This compares to 2012 when net absorption of warehouse/distribution space totaled 8.8 million square feet, making up for move-outs in the manufacturing sector. Total net absorption for all product types was 8.3 million square feet during 2012. Industrial inventory is expanding in DFW with approximately 3.7 million square feet of industrial space under construction or renovation as of March 2013. This compares to 2.1 million square feet under construction or renovation one year ago. Developers are responding to a lack …
Improvement in Dallas Dallas office market fundamentals has been supported by economic concentrations in the finance/insurance, energy and technology sectors, as well as the amenity-driven desirability of infill submarkets, namely Uptown and the Arts District. Yet, any discussion of Dallas area office expansions must begin with State Farm Insurance. The firm has accounted for a significant portion of activity, leasing more than 2 million square feet of office space in Richardson and Las Colinas in the past year. Banks and financial firms, including Frost Bank, Wells Fargo, Capital One and USAA, are expanding as improving economic conditions support lending and investment activity. With a 500,000-square-foot expansion by Denbury Resources in Plano and the growing presence of Crosstex Energy and Alon USA in Dallas, it is clear that the new energy boom is a positive for North Texas offices too. Leasing activity among technology firms is strong with Ericsson’s new building underway at its Plano campus being the most notable, although smaller software and telecom companies are also expanding, such as Hawkeye Communications in Uptown Dallas. Overall office vacancy in Dallas/Fort Worth has fallen 210 basis points (bps) from its peak in 2010. While this is certainly a strong recovery, it …
There appears to be no sign that the recent growth experienced by many Texas metropolitan areas is slowing down anytime soon, and Fort Worth is no exception. Substantial job growth, solid multifamily fundamentals, low interest rates and a pro-business climate have put many eyes on the Fort Worth market. The Fort Worth-Arlington MSA is experiencing positive job growth, and is listed as one of the best performing metros in the nation. The MSA added 36,700 jobs, an expansion of 4.2 percent year-over-year ending February 2013. The MSA also experienced an unemployment improvement of 0.8 percent. This was the largest year-over-year percentage increase in employment among all metropolitan divisions and good enough to be ranked 13th nationally in job addition. Many of these jobs have come from the numerous road construction projects that the area has undertaken, such as the North Tarrant Express, which has more than 1,100 employees working on the corridor. The $2.5 billion project just passed the three-year mark and is currently ahead of its estimated completion date of June 2015. When complete, the North Tarrant Express will run from Interstate 35 West in Fort Worth to Industrial Boulevard in Euless, relieving congestion, improving safety and providing for …
Austin has quickly become one of the hottest office investment markets in the country. In fact, many local market players say they’ve never seen this market more active, and for good reason. For Austin, it’s all about the strong combination of both outsized job growth and limited new development activity. On the jobs front, Austin gained 150,000 new residents over the past two years, according to the Census Bureau. In terms of construction starts, only three buildings were delivered to the market in the fourth quarter, and only 171,468 square feet of space was still under construction. These factors contributed to the Austin office market ending the fourth quarter of 2012 with a vacancy rate of 10.1 percent, down from 11.3 percent in the third quarter, with net absorption totaling positive 824,646 square feet in the fourth quarter. This year will see continued improvement in occupancy growth in Austin, though property performance will vary by submarket. For example, in the Round Rock/Georgetown/Cedar Park area, where a substantial amount of space was delivered during the recession, vacancy will tighten but will remain above 30 percent. As a result, rents in the area will continue to languish nearly 20 percent below the …
The Woodlands office submarket is one of Houston’s better performing submarkets, experiencing a robust fourth quarter 2012 with total absorption of 107,932 square feet. Spec office buildings have recently achieved 85 percent occupancy or higher prior to completing construction. For example, both 4 Waterway Square Place (a nine-story, 216,000-square-foot Class A building) and 3 Waterway Square Place (an 11-story, 234,000-square-foot Class A building) preleased to more than 95 percent prior to completion of construction. Total net absorption registered a positive 145,804 square feet in 2012. In addition, total vacancy for the market dropped 5.2 percent overall in the third quarter of 2012 to 4.2 percent in the final quarter of 2012. Class A rental rates in the second quarter of 2012 were $33.07, up 83 basis points from the prior quarter. Similarly, Class B rates increased three basis points to $22.81. Based on the continued decreasing vacancy rates, as well as continued increasing rental rates, The Woodlands projects to be a landlord favorable market for the year 2013. Several high-profile projects are under construction, including: • ExxonMobil Corp. is currently developing a 385-acre site along Interstate 45 and Spring Creek. The site will serve to consolidate all upstream Houston ExxonMobil …
The Houston industrial market ended 2012 on a positive growth trajectory and will continue to be one of the healthiest markets in the U.S. into 2013. 2012 ended with a fourth quarter vacancy rate of 5.2 percent and a positive net absorption totaling more than 1.7 million square feet of combined industrial space. A lack of available industrial inventory in the market is driving new development projects (2.5 million square feet) for both traditional warehouse/distribution space as well as freestanding, crane-ready manufacturing facilities that remain at a premium citywide. The lack of available inventory is pushing development outwards and driving rental rates and sales prices upward. This trend will continue to grow into 2013, but rental rates and sale prices will taper-off midway through 2013 as the market can only bear so much increase. Land prices have also seen a sharp uptick forcing users and developers to consider sites upwards of $4 per square foot when they have historically fought to stay under $3 per square foot. Additionally, there is a strong need for rail-served land sites or facilities. As the energy sector continues its growth and the Port of Houston takes on more capacity, the need for rail served …