Investors Worried about San Antonio

Berkadia managing director Brant Smith, a panelist, says San Antonio's multifamily demand hasn't been materially impacted by the changing oil markets. But investors and landlords are worried about how the shale play will fare and have been making knee-jerk reactions. Brant expects a stalemate between buyers and sellers this year. However, cheap financing will still drive deals, and he expects things to break loose in Q3 or Q4 of this year. Come hear more from Brant and others at our event, starting at 7:30am March 26 at the Sheraton Gunter.

San Antonio's multifamily market is ramping up significantly with more than 10,700 units in the works after delivering 4,800 units last year, says Austin Investor Interests' Robin Davis (center, between Michelle Fox and Janine Claycomb). She tells us that if developer expectations hold true, more than 8,000 of these will open this year, although a more realistic number would be about 6,000 to 7,000. Among the projects completed in Q1 (or near completion) include the 412-unit Legacy Brooks (pictured, below), the 336-unit Ventura Ridge, the 297-unit Thirty Oaks and the 252-unit Gardens of San Juan Ridge.

Even with the new units added last year, absorption remained positive in every quarter of 2014, she says. The average occupancy at the end of the year was 92% and the average effective rental rate was $1.01/SF. She tells us there were 66 multifamily properties traded in 2014 and volume decreased about 20% from 2013, yet the value of the traded assets was up 43%. The average sale price per unit was $102k, she tells us. What it all means is that the San Antonio market will continue to see much of the same growth in 2015, she tells us. The new unit additions will challenge occupancy during the slower quarters of the year but will continue to push rental rates up, she says. Once the latest wave of new units is completed, the market will continue to crawl steadily in an upward direction, she thinks. 

The expected $2B sale of Cushman & Wakefield is still months away, but a Shanghai-based investment firm has emerged as an early front-runner to acquire the mammoth brokerage. Fosun International is reportedly in early talks to buy the firm, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.

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