CRE Investors Start Putting Money Behind Defensive Strategies via NREI

Investors appear to be keeping the foot on the gas in terms of acquisitions. According to research firm Real Capital Analytics (RCA), investment sales volume jumped 15 percent year-over-year in 2018 to reach $562.1 billion. But some investors are clearly retooling strategies to account for slowing growth and late-cycle risks.

Investors have been talking about shifting gears to “defensive strategies” for quite some time in the near record-breaking growth cycle. Those strategies are becoming more visible as even the optimists acknowledge the likelihood of slower growth ahead in the next 12 to 24 months.

Read more...CRE Investors Start Putting Money Behind Defensive Strategies via NREI

MBA Predicts Originations to Hold at $530M via Multi-Housing News Online

Mortgage origination volume this year will most likely be steady with 2018 and 2017, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s 2019 Economic Outlook & CREF Forecast, which was released at its conference in San Diego.

“The overall expectation is, all things being equal, we be at this plateau for the next couple of years,” said Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s vice president of commercial-multifamily research.

Read more... MBA Predicts Originations to Hold at $530M via Multi-Housing News Online

Kingsley: Renewal Intent Rises in Q4 2018 With 55.6% of Tenants Likely to Re-up via Multifamily Executive Magazine

National renter satisfaction continued its steady upward climb in the final quarter of 2018, which marked a full year of increases in the metric. Before the fourth quarter of 2017, national resident satisfaction had held steady since 2015. This past quarter, however, 77.9% of residents reported “good” or “excellent” satisfaction with their renting experience, which is up only slightly from the third quarter of 2018, when 77.8% of residents were satisfied.

Read more...Kingsley: Renewal Intent Rises in Q4 2018 With 55.6% of Tenants Likely to Re-up via Multifamily Executive Magazine

DFW home sales down 7.6 percent in 4Q 2018 via Real Estate Center

North Texas home sales fell 7.6 percent to 22,402 transactions at the end of the year, according to a fourth quarter 2018 report by the Real Estate Center.

According to the report, the median home price grew 2.4 percent over the year to $260,000.

Read more...REC: DFW home sales down 7.6 percent in 4Q 2018 via Real Estate Center

Houston Economic Indicators February 2019 via Dallas Fed

Growth in Houston leading and coincident economic indicators weakened in December. Job growth slowed, but the local labor force expanded. Heavy and civil construction posted stellar job growth last year, and the existing-home market ended the year on healthy footing despite rising mortgage rates.

Read more... Houston Economic Indicators February 2019 via dallasfed.org

Austin Economic Indicators February 2019 via Dallas Fed

The Austin economy expanded at a healthy pace in December. The Austin Business-Cycle Index accelerated and remained above its long-term trend. Job growth by sector was mixed, with the health and education services sector continuing to accelerate and government jobs declining. Hourly wages increased, and median home prices and existing-home sales dipped slightly.

Read more...Austin Economic Indicators February 2019 - Dallasfed.org

The U.S. Apartment Sector Would Continue to Remain Strong Even in a Recession via NREI

Even if there is an economic downturn in the near future, the apartment sector is likely to hold up, according to industry experts.

“Apartments are still resilient against a possible recession,” says Andrew Rybczynski, senior consultant for CoStar Group Portfolio Strategy.

Though the high end of the market may be feeling the strain of overbuilding, the sector overall is benefitting from long-term trends that should continue to fill apartment units for the foreseeable future.

Read more...The U.S. Apartment Sector Would Continue to Remain Strong Even in a Recession via NREI

Survey: Multifamily Metrics Will Cool in 2019 via Rebusiness Online

Multifamily properties have produced strong returns for commercial developers and investors over the past few years. But the apartment supply wave appears to have crested, suggesting 2019 will bring a slower pace of rent growth. Consequently, pricing levels should come down, cap rates should creep upward and returns on investment should cool.

Read more...Survey: Multifamily Metrics Will Cool in 2019 via Rebusiness Online

Texas Economic Update February 1, 2019 via Dallas Fed

The Texas economy experienced another downshift in growth over the last two months, although the level of activity remains strong. Job growth decelerated slightly in the fourth quarter, and the Dallas Fed’s Texas Business Outlook Surveys (TBOS) suggest a slowing in output growth in December and January.

Expectations have also slumped; the 2019 job growth forecast for Texas is now between 1 and 2 percent, and survey contacts’ outlooks have notably deteriorated since November. Headwinds include lower oil prices, a strong dollar, tariffs, higher interest rates, labor constraints and increased uncertainty. Wage and price inflation may also be moderating; survey data point to softer growth in the second half of 2018 and expectations for slower growth in 2019.

Read more... Texas Economic Update February 1, 2019 via dallasfed.org

Multifamily real estate just had its best year since 2000 via HousingWire

By just about any way you look at it, 2018 was the best year for multifamily real estate this century: Renters paid more for housing than they ever have before, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae both had banner years, commercial and multifamily debt hit an all-time high, all while delinquencies remained at historic lows.

Read more...Multifamily real estate just had its best year since 2000 via HousingWire