Phoenix, AZ – June 19, 2024 – SVN Desert Commercial Advisors has unveiled its first-quarter market perspective, covering the Southwest United States from Texas to California. The report provides an in-depth outlook on 11 major markets and four key property types: office, industrial, retail, and multifamily, highlighting investor opportunities across the region.
Connect CRE sounded out two regional experts at SVN for their takes; Cameron Irons, CEO & Managing Director of SVN | Vanguard, which operates throughout Southern California; and Perry Laufenberg, Managing Partner at SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors in Phoenix. Together they offer a comprehensive overview of current market trends.
Perry Laufenberg
Managing Partner
Cameron Irons
Managing Director
INVESTOR INTERESTS
Transaction volume has declined as markets adjust to new interest rates, with industrial properties attracting the most investor interest, followed closely by retail properties due to low vacancy rates and rising rents. Meanwhile, multifamily investors in California are diversifying due to stringent tenant protections. These investors are now seeking less effort-intensive investments, such as group investments with management in place or single-tenant NNN properties, while other investors remain flexible, looking for opportunities across multiple property types.
OFFICE SECTOR
The office market is facing headwinds, causing a shift in investor priorities. According to Irons, past buyers were driven by cap rates, favoring older buildings. Now, renovated properties with strong occupancy and tenant rosters are in demand, as the high costs of renovating and maintaining older properties make them unprofitable. Rents for Class B and C offices have stagnated while costs have surged. Investors are now seeking value in suburban markets, targeting assets that can be bought at a low price per square foot.
Significant improvements are needed to attract tenants while maintaining competitive rental rates, as highlighted by Laufenberg. Investors who navigate this correctly still find opportunities in the office market.
MARKET TRENDS
Laufenberg notes a significant increase in interstate investment, particularly in Sunbelt locations like Arizona, Nevada, and Texas, driven by their pro-business policies and the pursuit of higher returns with lower risks. In Southern California, investors primarily target Arizona and Nevada due to their geographic proximity. Texas was popular but has cooled off due to rising prices and property tax concerns. There is also a move to locations where the investor may be relocating, including Utah, Tennessee, and recently Arkansas, adds Irons. It seems many individual investors are looking to retire near their family and that may be a driving force.
OUT-OF-STATE BUYERS
Irons observes that multifamily investors in California are increasingly looking out of state due to heightened government regulations and enforcement. The higher returns available outside California, combined with rent control and tenant rights legislation, are driving this trend. Additionally, Prop 19 has removed Prop 13 protections for investors when the owner passes away, further motivating the move.
Arizona attracts significant interest from out-of-state buyers, especially from California, due to lower prices and a more favorable tax and business environment. This trend has been particularly strong since COVID and continues today, says Laufenberg.
SVN | Desert Commercial Advisor’s Quarterly Southwest Perspective is created in conjunction with SVN® International and collaborated by the current 11 offices in major markets across this southwestern territory. Thank you to our team of experts at Los Angeles’s SVN | Rich Investment Partners, SVN | Vanguard – Orange County, SVN | Vanguard – San Diego, SVN | Insight operating across the Inland Empire, Las Vegas’s SVN | The Equity Group, SVN | Denver Commercial – Denver & Fort Collins, SVN | Walt Arnold Commercial Brokerage in Albuquerque, SVN | Trinity Advisors covering Dallas-Fort Worth, and in Greater Houston is SVN | J Beard Real Estate.
