Retail

By Taylor Williams DALLAS — As a metroplex, Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) has the physical sprawl, population density, pace of job growth and volume of housing development to fairly be labeled as one of the biggest consumer markets in the country, on par with New York City and Los Angeles. It’s the extent to which affordability has matured in New York City and Los Angeles that marks the key difference between DFW and the coastal behemoths. Aside from rental housing, no asset class within commercial real estate captures a given market’s affordability better than retail. Retail rents in the most sought-after corridors and districts of New York City and Los Angeles seemingly have no ceiling, and that is reflected in the prices of the products and services that are dispensed from those spaces. Editor’s note: InterFace Conference Group, a division of France Media Inc., produces networking and educational conferences for commercial real estate executives. To sign up for email announcements about specific events, visit www.interfaceconferencegroup.com/subscribe. It’s fair to assume that for most households that have relocated from the coasts to DFW, housing and jobs have been the most decisive factors. Yet retail spending does account for a good chunk of the average family’s disposable …