The Pacific Coast Builders Conference focuses heavily on single-family construction. But this year’s PCBC (June 27-29, San Diego) had a strong dose of multifamily-related content, according to an excellent report by Patricia Kirk, in National Real Estate Investor. Among the trends Kirk noted:
1. There’s a lot of growth ahead for the multifamily sector, said Kim Edwards, SVP, J.P. Morgan Real Estate Banking. Long-term growth in occupancy rates is projected, Edwards told PCBC attendees.
2. Millennials in the 20- to 34-year-old age bracket are not the only group looking for apartments, said Ron Witten, Witten Advisors LLC, a multifamily market advisory firm. All age groups under 65 are showing demand for rentals.
3. Mixed-use projects are entertaining more non-traditional uses, such as museums and conference centers, said Jonathan Cox, SVP, AvalonBay Communities, a publicly traded multifamily REIT.
4. It is wise to lease the retail component of mixed-use projects first, said Kimberly Byrum, Principal, Meyers Research. The retail creates a “destination” that helps in leasing the multifamily units.
5. Apartment units in mixed-use projects don’t necessarily outperform the market in rent growth, according to Byrum, but they may stimulate rent growth for the larger neighborhood. A walkable environment can add $100 to $125 a month to rentals. It also produces higher yields.
For more, go to: http://bit.ly/2urV2nf.
Related Stories
Apartments | Jun 4, 2024
Apartment sizes on the rise after decade-long shrinking trend
The average size of new apartments in the U.S. saw substantial growth in 2023, bouncing back to 916 sf after a steep decline the previous year. That is according to a recent RentCafe market insight report released this month.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 3, 2024
Grassroots groups becoming a force in housing advocacy
A growing movement of grassroots organizing to support new housing construction is having an impact in city halls across the country. Fed up with high housing costs and the commonly hostile reception to new housing proposals, advocacy groups have sprung up in many communities to attend public meetings to speak in support of developments.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 3, 2024
New York’s office to residential conversion program draws interest from 64 owners
New York City’s Office Conversion Accelerator Program has been contacted by the owners of 64 commercial buildings interested in converting their properties to residential use.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 3, 2024
Seattle mayor wants to scale back energy code to spur more housing construction
Seattle’s mayor recently proposed that the city scale back a scheduled revamping of its building energy code to help boost housing production. The proposal would halt an update to the city’s multifamily and commercial building energy code that is scheduled to take effect later this year.
Resiliency | Jun 3, 2024
Houston’s buyout program has prevented flood damage but many more homes at risk
Recent flooding in Houston has increased focus on a 30-year-old program to buy out some of the area’s most vulnerable homes. Storms dropped 23 inches of rain on parts of southeast Texas, leading to thousands of homes being flooded in low-lying neighborhoods around Houston.
MFPRO+ New Projects | May 29, 2024
Two San Francisco multifamily high rises install onsite water recycling systems
Two high-rise apartment buildings in San Francisco have installed onsite water recycling systems that will reuse a total of 3.9 million gallons of wastewater annually. The recycled water will be used for toilet flushing, cooling towers, and landscape irrigation to significantly reduce water usage in both buildings.
MFPRO+ News | May 28, 2024
ENERGY STAR NextGen Certification for New Homes and Apartments launched
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently launched ENERGY STAR NextGen Certified Homes and Apartments, a voluntary certification program for new residential buildings. The program will increase national energy and emissions savings by accelerating the building industry’s adoption of advanced, energy-efficient technologies, according to an EPA news release.
MFPRO+ News | May 24, 2024
Austin, Texas, outlaws windowless bedrooms
Austin, Texas will no longer allow developers to build windowless bedrooms. For at least two decades, the city had permitted developers to build thousands of windowless bedrooms.
Mass Timber | May 22, 2024
3 mass timber architecture innovations
As mass timber construction evolves from the first decade of projects, we're finding an increasing variety of mass timber solutions. Here are three primary examples.
Mixed-Use | May 22, 2024
Multifamily properties above ground-floor grocers continue to see positive rental premiums
Optimizing land usage is becoming an even bigger priority for developers. In some city centers, many large grocery stores sprawl across valuable land.
