Category: Central/South Texas News DO NOT USE

Hilco Real Estate Announces The Sale Of Prime Austin-Area Development Land In Liberty Hill, Texas

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NORTHBROOK, Ill., May 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Hilco Real Estate, LLC announces Thursday, June 11, 2020, as the managed bid deadline for the sale of 60± acres of development land located along State Highway 29, northwest of Austin in Liberty Hill, Texas. Liberty Hill is located just 33 miles north of downtown Austin and 11 miles west of Georgetown. The Austin area has experienced significant growth over the last few decades. Liberty Hill is on a similar growth trajectory, for the coming years, with both its population and economy. According to Best Places’ website, Liberty Hill’s future job growth is projected to exceed 51% over the next ten years, higher than the national average of 33.5%. The subject property offers an excellent opportunity for buyers to take advantage of the swiftly expanding Austin metropolitan statistical area (MSA). This excellent development site offers 1,100 feet of frontage on well-trafficked State Highway 29 and is bordered on the south by a rail line operated by Capital MetroRail. Just south of the track sits Liberty Hill Elementary School. The city has shown a great commitment to education with 2018 voters approving a proposed $98.6 million bond package to address the Liberty Hill’s growing school population. In addition to having one of the top school districts in all of Central Texas, as well as a 15-1 student-teacher ratio, the city has a business-friendly environment with a proactive economic development team that has been integral to fostering entrepreneurial development, downtown revitalization and destination tourism. The city also boasts a strong health care presence as 11% of the population is employed by a health care sector employer. Click to read more at www.prnewswire.com.

Rent Growth Likely to Slow as Uncertainty from COVID-19 Looms Over the Market

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Prior to the March onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and related virus control measures bringing business across the state to a halt, the Austin office market witnessed some softening in availability as asking rents continued to push higher. At the end of the first quarter, the overall average asking rent stood at $39.28 per square foot (psf), reflecting annual (9.2%) and quarterly (2.4%) increases. Class A asking rents increased by 5.8% over the year to $42.93 psf. Central Business District and suburban asking rents increased by 6.7% and 7.7% year over year through the first quarter, respectively. As the market adjusts itself to the shifts that COVID-19 has created, rental rate growth is expected to slow. Downward pressure is likely to come from an influx of sublease space on the market as venture-capitalfunded technology companies implement cost-saving measures. Availability rates see year over year softening and are expected to continue to rise as COVID-19 reality sets in Austin’s overall availability rate increased by 10 basis points over the quarter, and 280 basis points year over year, to 13.8% in the first quarter of 2020. In comparison, the average Class A availability rate declined 20 basis points over the quarter, but is still up 430 basis points on an annual basis (14.9%). Market fundamentals differ some in the core and surrounding markets, the Central Business District availability rate rose by 200 basis points to 11.1%, while the average suburban availability rate declined by 30 basis points, to 14.5%. Click to read more at www.savills.us.

The Texas real estate market is headed for a slowdown. The question is for how long.

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As Texans adjust to life under orders to stay at home during the coronavirus pandemic — and scramble to cover expenses with incomes that were drastically cut or abruptly shut off — housing and real estate experts say it’s hard to predict what the parallel public health and economic crises will do to home values and sales. A lot depends on how long the twin troubles last. “We definitely will have a slowdown, but the question is how much and how long,” said Scott Norman, executive director of the Texas Association of Builders. That’s a sudden about-face for what had been, until now, one of the most dynamic real estate markets in the country. The state has had five consecutive years breaking records in terms of numbers of houses sold and median prices, according to Texas Realtors. And Texas’ home building industry has been solid, too; no other state had more building permits in 2019, according to census data. Luis Torres, an economist with the Texas A&M Real Estate Center, said the housing sector can be a barometer for the economy as a whole because it affects jobs of laborers, builders, Realtors and a litany of other professions. “And it has a multiplier effect into the rest of the economy, from moving companies to furniture stores,” Torres said. Already, experts are seeing slowdowns in home showings — which are now largely done virtually — and expect that permits for new construction might also drop. For regions whose residents rely largely on the energy industry for work, like Houston or the Permian Basin, or on cross-border trade, like the Rio Grande Valley, home values and sales may dip more than in other Texas regions. Click to read more at www.news-journal.com.

Minneapolis’ United Properties moving into Austin market

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Minneapolis-based development company United Properties will establish a development office in Austin, Texas, with the hiring of local industry veteran Josh Delk as senior vice president, Austin commercial development, effective April 13. This move marks the third operating location for the privately held development company in its 104-year history. “We’ve studied the Austin market very carefully, our leadership has some familiarity with Austin, and we’ve generally been impressed by its growth trajectory and how it’s responded in both market expansions and downturns alike,” says Bill Katter, president and chief investment officer, United Properties Development. United Properties has had just two private owners in its history. Since 1998 the company has been owned by the Pohlad family of Minneapolis, owners of a diverse portfolio of businesses including Major League Baseball’s Minnesota Twins. United Properties was originally established in 1916 by members of St. Paul’s Hamm family to develop establishments to serve their brewing company’s beer. Click to read more at www.rejournals.com.

Austin City Council Approves 60-Day ‘Grace Period’ For Owed Rent

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Austin tenants affected financially by the COVID-19 pandemic have 60 days to come up with owed rent once a landlord starts threatening eviction. With a unanimous vote Thursday, council members approved an ordinance adding another step to the eviction process, thereby slowing a potential force-out of tenants unable to pay rent because their wages have dried up. It goes into effect immediately and applies to both residential and commercial properties. “No one should lose their home during the pandemic,” Council Member Greg Casar, who brought the item forward, said. “It’s wrong and it’s also terrible for public health.” There had been confusion on behalf of renters and landlords about how to move forward amid staggering unemployment. Some landlords have begun offering payment plans to those affected by the coronavirus, while others have reiterated that rent is due in full. Before council’s vote, landlords could still file evictions against tenants, although Travis County judges are not hearing these cases. Judges have suspended eviction hearings until at least May 9. The new rule buys renters time by adding a step to the eviction process, which typically begins when a landlord posts a “notice to vacate” sign on a tenant’s door. This indicates the intent to file an eviction with the courts within days unless the tenant pays rent or moves out. Click to read more at www.kut.org.

Austin outranks major West Coast city in new projection of office job growth

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It’s Bat City versus the City by the Bay in a new projection for the growth of office jobs in 2020. Commercial real estate services company CBRE predicts Austin will see a 2.6 percent rise in office jobs this year compared with last year. That puts Austin in first place for anticipated office-job growth in 2020 among U.S. markets with at least 37.5 million square feet of office space. Office jobs include those in the tech, professional services, and legal sectors. Austin edges out San Francisco for the top spot in CBRE’s forecast, published January 9. The company predicts a 2.5 percent increase in San Francisco office jobs this year versus last year. Personal finance website WalletHub recently ranked San Francisco and Austin third and fourth, respectively, on its list of the U.S. best cities to find a job. “It’s not surprising that the forecast for Austin is extremely bright, and we expect that technology companies and professional firms will still drive the demand for more [offices],” Troy Holme, executive vice president in the Austin office of CBRE, says in a January 22 release. Click to read more at www.austinculturemap.com.