Each Wednesday, The Wrap presents a compilation of recent noteworthy commercial real estate stories from a variety of publications. Below are links to five stories that caught our eyes in recent days.
• The Nature and Nurture of Franchise Tenants by Ron Goldstone for Shopping Center Business.
Key excerpt:
“Shopping center operators should be alert to the opportunities — and challenges — of working with franchisees as tenants. Issues include the business experience and sophistication of the individual tenant, including the potential for greater variability in individual store operations compared with a national chain operator. They can also include the inevitable pushes and pulls between the dictates of a national franchise agreement and needing to conform to landlord rules while working as a strong partner with any shopping center’s other tenants.”
• Occupancy Stays Above 95 Percent in June by Les Shaver of Multifamily Executive.
Key excerpt:
“In May, the apartment occupancy rate rose above 95 percent for the first time since Dallas-based Axiometrics began tracking the apartment market six years ago. In June that number stayed above 95 percent, while the concession rate fell to 0.78 percent (a five-year low), and annualized rent growth grew to 3.6 percent (the highest total since December 2012).”
• High Prices Pushing Hotel Investors Into Select Service, Second-Tier Markets by Randyl Drummer of CoStar.
Key excerpt:
“Lodging property profits are up, debt is more readily available at attractive terms, capitalization rates are stable and investors — heartened by strong lodging metrics — expect values and sales activity to continue to increase, according to PKF Consulting USA, LLC's annual Hospitality Investment Survey.
However, many survey respondents indicated that owners are holding on to their high-yielding hotel assets as the outlook for NOI growth remains strong. As a result, investors compete for the limited number of hotels available on the market for purchase, said Scott Smith, vice president in the Atlanta office of PKFC.”
• Great Graphic: US Commercial Real Estate Recovery by Marc Chandler of Business Insider.
Key excerpt:
“National commercial property prices are up about 15 percent year-over-year. Even stronger gains have been posted in the major cities.
Commercial property prices slumped 40 percent in the 2007-2009 period. The national average has nearly returned to its previous peak while the commercial real estate prices in the major urban centers are at new highs.”
• C&W: U.S. Industrial Leading U.S. Commercial Real Estate Recovery by REJournals.com
Key excerpt:
“The U.S. industrial vacancy rate continued to trend down during the second quarter to [its] current 7.2 percent, 80 basis points lower than one year ago and the lowest level since first-quarter 2008. This represents a significant drop from the recent high of 10.8 percent posted during first-quarter 2010. Two California markets currently boast the lowest industrial vacancies in the nation, including the San Francisco Peninsula (3.7 percent) and Orange County (3.9 percent).”