Quarterly Market Report APRIL 2019
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AUSTIN OFFICE | Q1 2019 Quarterly Market Report APRIL 2019 Supply & Demand EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Net Absorption Completions Vacancy 3.0 16% Vacancy remains under 9.0% 2.5 14% The vacancy rate for office space in the Austin Millions (SF) metro has remained below 9.0% for 10 consecutive 2.0 12% quarters, or Q4 2016. The record-breaking levels of new construction have been pushing the vacancy 1.5 10% rate up slightly, ending Q1 2019 at 8.8%, up 50 basis points quarter-over-quarter, and an increase 1.0 8% of 70 basis points year-over-year. Net absorption 0.5 6% was positive 539,000 sq. ft., down from the second- highest quarterly absorption amount recorded by NAI 0.0 4% Partners in Q4 2018 at 1.3 million sq. ft. The highest quarterly amount of absorption occurred during -0.5 2% the third quarter of 2015 at 1.6 million sq. ft. New -1.0 0% construction delivered during the first quarter stood Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 at 1 million sq. ft., with 93.5% of that space occupied. 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Full-service average asking rents are at $35.32 per sq. ft., remaining between $34.00 to $36.00 per sq. ft. since Q2 2017 (eight consecutive quarters). Market Indicators Current Prior Quarter Year Ago Q1 2019 Q4 2018 Q1 2018 Austin economic indicators Vacant Direct 8.0% 7.5% 7.2% Austin added 23,800 net new jobs, growth of 2.3%, in the 12 months ending in February, making Austin the Vacant Total 8.8% 8.3% 8.1% 11th-fastest-growing major metro. Wholesale trade Available Direct 12.8% 10.2% 10.2% was Austin’s fastest growing industry (8.2%) while Available Total 14.5% 12.1% 11.9% professional and business services added the most Net Absorption (SF) 539,313 1,299,863 858,845 jobs (6,200) over the last 12 months. On a seasonally adjusted basis, Austin’s February unemployment rate Leasing Activity (SF) 2,4 47,017 2,170,780 2,005,670 was 3.0%, down from 3.2% in January. The statewide Construction (SF) 5,733,588 4,559,633 3,580,590 seasonally adjusted rate is 3.8% in February, Deliveries (SF) 1,0 67,851 1,540,565 1,066,930 unchanged from January. The national rate is 3.8%, improved from 4.0%., according to the Federal Avg Asking Rent (Gross) $35.32 $35.42 $34.59 Reserve Bank of Dallas. On the housing front, the Inventory (SF) 87,483,870 86,399,881 84,468,153 market remained active as existing-home sales in the metro increased 7.1% from January to February and 4.1% from this time last year. The median home price in Austin decreased in February to $301,418, down 1% year over year. HOUSTON | AUSTIN | SAN ANTONIO www.naipartners.com/austin AUSTIN OFFICE | Q1 2019 Quarterly Market Report MARKET OVERVIEW Construction surge continues Construction Total Under Construction: 5,733,588 SF In the last five years over 12.6 million sq. ft. has been Pre-Leased Space Available Space delivered, expanding the Austin office market by 16.4%, totaling 87.5 million sq. ft. of inventory. There CBD are 44 office projects covering 5.7 million sq. ft. of Southeast space under construction in the Greater Austin area— North/Domain more square footage than at any other time in the Central metro’s history, exceeding the record of 5.1 million Southwest sq. ft. in 2001, when there was 57.3 million sq. ft. of inventory. Developers are moving swiftly to keep up Northeast with demand. Construction activity at the end of Q1 South 2019 (5.7 million sq. ft.) was up 60.1% compared to CP-GT-RR the end of Q1 2018 (3.6 million sq. ft.). Northwest 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 Austin’s newest high-rise breaks ground Millions (SF) In early March, The Quincy, a 30-story mixed-use tower being developed at 93 Red River St. broke ground. The new high-rise will be in the Rainey Street Completions district of Austin’s CBD, located between Driskell and Total Delivered: 1,067,851 SF Davis streets—where there are currently two parking Pre-Leased Space Available Space lots. It will bring together one floor of retail, 19 floors of residential units, three floors of office space, plus North/Domain seven levels of above-ground parking. The top floor will be an indoor/outdoor sky deck overlooking Lady Northeast Bird Lake. It is scheduled to open in early 2021. Southeast Technology-driven growth Northwest Austin’s appeal led to 136 tech companies relocating Central or expanding in the area during 2018, with plans to create close to 18,300 jobs, according to CoStar. Southwest Word on the street has Google leasing the entirety 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 of Block 185, a 35-story, 790,000-sq.-ft. office tower Thousands downtown (with preparation at the site underway), and leasing the entire seven-story, 150,000-sq.-ft. Plaza Saltillo development in East Austin. Meanwhile, Amazon plans to lease around half of Domain 10, Net Absorption a 15-story, near 300,000-sq.-ft. office building in Class A Class B Overall northwest Austin near Apple’s existing multi-building 2.0 campus. Less than a mile away, Apple’s proposed $1 billion, 133-acre, 3 million-sq.-ft. second campus 1.5 could open by the end of 2021. Millions (SF) 1.0 Indeed, extending its expansion 0.5 In 2018, Indeed announced plans to add 3,000 jobs in Austin, and in preparation, signed a lease taking 0.0 multiple floors covering 307,000 sq. ft. in what will be -0.5 Austin’s tallest tower, Block 71. Located in downtown Austin, construction on the project is scheduled for -1.0 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 completion in 2021. In March, the job search engine 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 goliath is extending its expansion in Austin, leasing www.naipartners.com/austin 2 AUSTIN OFFICE | Q1 2019 Quarterly Market Report the Domain Gateway office building in its entirety. The company’s most recent lease in the five-story, 183,911-sq.-ft. office building at 2900 Esperanza Leasing Activity Crossing is located in the mixed-use development The Class A Class B Domain in north Austin. The move will allow Indeed to 3.5 accommodate thousands of employees over the next 3.0 few years. Millions (SF) 2.5 Investment sales activity 2.0 Real Capital Analytics data reports office sales 1.5 volume for Q1 2019 in the Austin area at $209.9 million 1.0 compared to Q1 2018 at $338.3 million, resulting in a year-over-year quarterly volume change of -38.0%. 0.5 The primary capital composition for buyers in 2019 0.0 was made up of 79.9% REIT/listed investors, and Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 16.7% private. For sellers, the majority was 79.9% REIT/listed, and 11.0% private. In March, Taurus Investment Holdings sold Travesia Corporate Park, a three-building, Class A mixed-use office park located in the North/Domain submarket. The buyer, Jefferson Historical Investment Trends - Sales Volume Quarterly Volume 03/31/19: $209,910,000 River Capital paid $40.9 million for the asset. The Year-over-Year Change: -38.0% 176,161-sq.-ft. development is on 24 acres at 3800 Source: Real Capital Analytics Quick Hill Road and consists of three buildings of Quarterly Volume 1,200 46,200, 62,250 and 68,171 sq. ft. The property was 100% leased at the time of sale to tenants Hewlett- 1,000 Packard, Sonic Healthcare and Protect America. Millions ($) 800 Average asking rents remain elevated 600 Office asking rents in Austin have risen to $35.32 per sq. ft., up $0.73 per sq. ft. year-over-year. 400 Although concessions such as free rent and tenant improvement allowances make posted rents less 200 meaningful as a market indicator, the price of Austin’s 0 office space continues to climb. Asking rates for Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 Q1 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 existing Class A space in the CBD is at an average of $49.45 per sq. ft. Existing buildings with the most available Class A office space in the CBD include 600 Congress Ave., One American Center (133,797 sq. ft.); 401 Congress Ave., Frost Bank Tower (100,232 Average Full-Service Asking Rent sq. ft.); 111 Congress Ave., One Eleven (98,635 sq. Class A Direct Class A Sublease Class B Direct Class B Sublease ft.); and 98 San Jacinto Blvd., San Jacinto Center $45 (98,400 sq. ft.). There are four Class A buildings under $40 $39.80 construction in the CBD with available space; 200 W. 6th St., Block 71 (265,134 sq. ft.); 1836 San Jacinto, $35 $32.68 Innovation (207,856 sq. ft.); 93 Red River, The Quincy $30 $31.47 (77,782 sq. ft.); and 1400 Lavaca St., SXSW Center $25 (35,557 sq. ft.). These four existing buildings, and four $23.49 under construction, contain 1.0 million sq.