Real Estate Technology
prnewswire | September 14, 2023
GID, a real estate owner and fiduciary that invests in multiple asset classes, has announced that its industrial team, GID Industrial, has been named a 2023 Influencer in Industrial by GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum. This award recognizes distinguished individuals, teams, and companies for notable achievements within the industrial real estate sector.
"GID Industrial is honored to receive this prestigious recognition," says Rene Circ, co-head of GID Industrial. "In the three years since we formed our team, we have built an impressive portfolio that has sustained occupancy and offers potential for continued rent growth. We aim to continue our portfolio expansion, targeting opportunities that offer strong potential for long-term growth."
GID has been active in the industrial sector since 1986 and officially launched its industrial platform in 2020. In the three years after the platform's launch, the team has accomplished significant growth within the sector, executing stabilized, value-add, and development transactions. This diverse mix allows the team to provide its partners with investment opportunities tailored to their unique risk and return preferences. The platform currently operates more than 25M square feet of industrial space in top markets across the country.
"GID Industrial's key differentiator is the expertise and passion of our team," says Michael Wenaas, co-head of GID Industrial. "With 30 individuals boasting an average of 21 years of experience in the sector, our team is well equipped to provide unique value to our partners by offering a practiced, holistic perspective on the state of the industry. Our achievements over the last three years are a credit to the powerhouse team that we have assembled."
GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum Influencers in Industrial are selected by its editors based on nominations that outline the nominee's accomplishments and impact on the sector.
About GID
GID is a leading real estate investment and management firm that operates a diverse portfolio of multifamily, industrial, and mixed-use developments across the United States. With over 60 years of experience across multiple asset classes, GID is an established real estate private equity investor and fiduciary supported by an integrated operating platform with approximately 54,000 multifamily units and over 25M square feet of industrial and commercial space of assets under management. The company also operates a credit platform that aims to provide commercial real estate debt solutions for institutional borrowers.
With corporate offices in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, New York City, and San Francisco, GID employs over 1,200 real estate professionals and operates an expansive portfolio of existing and under-development properties valued at over $30.1 billion1 as of June 2023.
1 Assets Under Management is calculated in compliance with the definition for Assets Under Management ("AUM") prescribed in INREV's Global Definitions Database.
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Market Outlook, Real Estate Investment
Businesswire | July 06, 2023
Workspace Property Trust (Workspace), the preeminent US suburban commercial office property owner and partner for the Fortune 1000, announced today that it successfully modified and extended its approximately $1.3 billion CMBS facility, securing a two-year extension for loans supported by its nearly 10 million square foot portfolio of 146 suburban office and light industrial, R&D and flex industrial properties in 14 major metropolitan markets across the US. In additional to this portfolio, Workspace owns an additional nine million Class A square feet of commercial office portfolio across 59 properties in the US.
The successful refinancing of this Workspace’s Class A portfolio is a major accomplishment in one of the most difficult commercial real estate and capital market environments in decades and reflects the strength, experience and operating performance of the Workspace management team. Iron Hound Management Company LLC served as financial advisor to Workspace.
Workspace Strengthens Its Balance Sheet To Invest in Growth
“We are thrilled to have successfully modified and extended our $1.3 billion CMBS facility with a two-year extension and significant equity participation,” said Thomas A. Rizk, co-founder and CEO of Workspace. “Getting this deal done in what many have described as the most challenging real estate market in decades was no small feat and is testament to the underlying strength of our portfolio, the resilience of the suburban office sector, the promise of our pipeline and the capabilities of Workspace’s vertically integrated national platform. With the strengthening of our balance sheet, we are now in the enviable position of driving growth by investing in our leasing operations and deploying state-of-the-market enhancements in key market locations as we double down on the opportunities in the suburbs. We appreciate the support of our lenders, partners and investors and are focused on the tremendous opportunities in front of us.”
Workspace owns and operates suburban office buildings in 14 of the top 20 US metropolitan areas, including Atlanta, Philadelphia, Dallas, Charlotte, Tampa, Phoenix, Silicon Valley, South Florida, Houston, Portland, Seattle, Minneapolis, Chicago and St. Louis. Approximately 40% of the Fortune 500 have headquarters in Workspace markets and nearly seven million square feet of the Workspace portfolio is leased by companies included in the Fortune 1000.
Workspace Suburban Markets Outperform Central Business Districts
In addition to the financing news, Workspace also released the findings of a recently conducted analysis of national real estate data that highlight the meaningful outperformance of suburban commercial office markets over downtown commercial office locations. The data set, compiled for Workspace by CBRE Strategic Investment Consulting, a global leader in commercial real estate services and investments, underscores the strength, vitality and energy of suburban office markets as employers across the country reinvent how and where people work today.
At the national level—and in key markets driving US economic growth— suburban office submarkets have outperformed central business district submarkets during each of the past three economic downturns, with smaller declines in rent growth and absorption rates and much steadier vacancy rates. This pattern has been particularly pronounced since the onset of COVID-19 and is leading to a fundamental reset in how corporate America is thinking about where and how their people should work. Based on the CBRE data, this resiliency is largely expected to persist through the current cycle, as many suburban locations continue to benefit from a rising number of occupiers and employees prioritizing the value of working closer to home.
“Workspace Property Trust is differentiated by our proven core strategy – to provide innovative and responsive real estate solutions to the Fortune 1000 in fast-growing, highly desirable suburban commercial markets across the country,” said Roger W. Thomas, co-founder, President and COO of Workspace. “In the last year, we transformed our business by doubling our footprint to more than 19 million square feet of commercial and light industrial assets in some of the most vibrant markets in the US, offering our customers lifestyle oriented, community-based working environments that are fundamental requisites for corporations today. The CBRE data we are highlighting today is a clear and resounding affirmation that today’s most progressive companies – large and small – are investing in suburban markets, reversing decades of legacy thinking.”
Mr. Rizk further stated, “New patterns of work and new demands by our tenants and their employees directly translate into the need for new long-term real estate innovation. We know the biggest single issue for our tenant partners is reducing the commuting time for their employees, allowing them to spend more time with their families. Our commitment to service and convenience and relentlessly focusing on delivering on our promise of “Work. Life. Balanced.” has solidified our partnerships with a number of Fortune 1000 organizations as they double down on their suburban footprints, investing significant dollars and resources in the lives of their team members. When Roger and I started Workspace, suburban office was a contrarian bet. The CBRE data validates what we’ve been experiencing on the ground over the last few years coming out of the pandemic: suburban office is benefitting from a foundational demographic shift to suburban submarkets in gateway metropolitan areas across the country where the quality of the work experience is the defining factor in leasing decisions.”
Suburban Markets Outperformance: National and Local Metrics
Nationally, suburban commercial office outperformed central business district commercial office in several key metrics, including vacancy, net absorption and rent growth. In 2022:
By year-end, the national vacancy rate for suburban office was 17.2% vs. 17.6% for central business districts, the first time the suburban rate has been tighter since 1989.
On net, the amount of suburban office space absorbed by occupiers in 2022 was equivalent to 0.3% of total suburban inventory. Meanwhile, downtown space was put back on the market (negative net absorption) at an amount equivalent to 0.2% of downtown inventory.
Year-over-year rent growth in the suburbs was a full percentage point higher than in central business districts -- 1.6% vs. 0.6%.
Additionally, when ranking U.S. suburban office markets across a variety of performance metrics, every Workspace market was represented within the top 15 for at least one metric, with several markets ranking in the top 15 multiple times. For example, over the past two years (Q4 2020 – Q4 2022):
Fort Lauderdale and Miami tied for the sixth-highest increase in post-pandemic rent growth among all suburban office markets, with asking rent increases of 1.7% in both markets.
Charlotte and Phoenix tied as the 11th highest in rent growth, with increases of 0.8% in both markets.
San Jose ranked second for the most square feet of suburban office space absorbed and seventh for absorption as a share of total inventory.
Other Workspace markets appearing in the top 15 for one or both of these absorption metrics were Chicago, Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami.
Based on forecasts for the next two years (Q4 2022 – Q4 2024):
Workspace markets represented five out of the top eight suburban markets with the strongest near-term rent growth projections.
These markets include Milwaukee, Phoenix, Houston, Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
Dallas was the third-highest ranking market for the expected gap between the suburban and central business district vacancy rate – 22.4% in the Dallas suburbs vs 27.1% in the Dallas CBD.
Other Workspace markets in the top 15 across this metric include Seattle, Houston, Kansas City, St. Louis, Fort Lauderdale and Minneapolis.
About Workspace Property Trust
Workspace Property Trust is a privately held, vertically integrated, full-service commercial real estate company specializing in the ownership, management, leasing and development of office and light industrial, R&D and flex space across the US. Founded in 2015, as combined Workspace owns and operates approximately 19 million square feet of suburban office and light industrial, R&D, Flex (IRDF) properties in markets across the country, including 14 of the top 20 US metropolitan areas. For more information on Workspace, please visit www.workspaceproperty.com
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Real Estate Technology, Agent
PRnewswire | August 04, 2023
Capital Square, one of the nation's leading sponsors of tax-advantaged real estate investments and an active developer of multifamily communities, announced today that its offering, CS1031 Ashford Townes BFR Housing, DST, has been fully subscribed. The Regulation D private placement, which raised nearly $13.7 million from accredited investors, is comprised of a 74-unit, newly constructed build-for-rent townhome community in the affluent Raleigh suburb of Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina.
Capital Square formed the Private Equity Group, managed by experienced real estate executives Dave Platter and Jon Trott as managing directors and co-heads, to profit from opportunities in the housing market, including a dedicated build-for-rent ("BFR") strategy in high growth sunbelt markets. This represents Capital Square's third BFR offering on platform to date.
"This is another home run for Capital Square in providing a newly constructed build-for-rent housing community for Section 1031 exchange and other investors seeking stable cash flow and capital appreciation. From Class A and Class B residential communities, manufactured housing in Florida and now build-for-rent residential communities, Capital Square is providing investors with a range of options to invest in the vibrant southeastern housing markets," said Louis Rogers, founder and co-chief executive officer of Capital Square.
Completed in February 2022, Ashford Townes is located at 604 Oakbrook Pass Way. The townhome community, developed by D.R. Horton, the nation's largest homebuilder by volume, boasts three-bedroom, open floorplans averaging 1,693 square feet with integrated smart-home technology, stainless steel appliances, quartz countertops, high vaulted ceilings, built-in window blinds, spacious walk-in closets, full size washer-dryers, attached one-car garages, private patios and outdoor storage. A community dog park is additionally contemplated for development.
Residents have access to over 130,000 jobs, including major employers such as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Novartis, IQVIA, JLL and Duke Energy. Five minutes from the property are a plethora of local retailers, restaurants, breweries, fitness centers and top performing schools. Approximately 30 minutes south of the property is Research Triangle Park, the largest research park in the U.S. and a premier global innovation center covering 7,000 acres of the combined Raleigh-Durham-Cary statistical area.
"Ashford Townes is an affordable housing option amidst Raleigh's single-family for-sale market, where rents are predicted to grow 3.75% over the next five years," said Whitson Huffman, co-chief executive officer. "The area has seen a recent decline of multifamily inventory, making the Raleigh market an attractive market for investment in a high-quality single-family rental community."
Capital Square is an active owner of multifamily communities in North Carolina. The firm recently acquired Asheville NC Apartment Portfolio, a two-property multifamily portfolio comprised of a total of 305 apartment homes in Asheville. The community was acquired on behalf of CS1031 Asheville NC Apartment Portfolio, DST, a private placement offering that seeks to raise $73.1 million in equity from accredited investors and has a minimum investment requirement of $50,000.
Since its founding in 2012, Capital Square has acquired 171 real estate assets for over 6,500 investors seeking quality replacement properties that qualify for tax deferral under Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code and other investors seeking stable cash flow and capital appreciation.
About Capital Square
Capital Square is a vertically integrated national real estate firm specializing in tax-advantaged real estate investments, including Delaware statutory trusts for Section 1031 exchanges, qualified opportunity zone funds for tax deferral and exclusion and a real estate investment trust (REIT). In recent years the company has become an active developer of mixed-use multifamily properties in the southeastern U.S., with eight current projects totaling approximately 2,000 apartment units with a total development cost in excess of $600 million. Since 2012, Capital Square has completed more than $7.5 billion in transaction volume. Capital Square's related entities provide a range of services, including due diligence, acquisition, loan sourcing, property/asset management and disposition, for a growing number of high-net-worth investors, private equity firms, family offices and institutional investors. Since 2017, Capital Square has been recognized by Inc. 5000 as one of the fastest growing companies in the nation for six consecutive years. In 2017, 2018 and 2020, the company was also ranked on Richmond BizSense's list of fastest growing companies. Additionally, Capital Square was listed by Virginia Business on their "Best Places to Work in Virginia" report in 2019 and their "Fantastic 50" reports in 2019 and 2020. In 2023, Capital Square was recognized by the Richmond Times-Dispatch as one of the region's "Top Work Places."
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Real Estate Technology
REcolorado | September 28, 2023
Today, in partnership with proptech leader SkySlope, Colorado’s largest real estate multiple listing service, REcolorado, announced they will co-develop an innovative product called Offer Insights. Scheduled to be released first to REcolorado subscribers in early 2024, Offer Insights harnesses the power of machine learning and market data to alert agents of opportunities and potential errors as they are completing real estate forms. This feature streamlines processes and boosts compliance by delivering market-aware suggestions to agents, using real-time data to signal when any information entered on a form falls above or below accepted industry standards.
“When co-developing Offer Insights, we wanted to improve compliance, but we also wanted to provide REcolorado subscribers with essential market visibility,” said SkySlope CEO Tyler Smith. “Offer Insights will provide key indicators of what’s happening in the local market. Agents who use it will have access to beneficial information that’s not available anywhere else.”
REcolorado is dedicated to engaging with their subscribers to gain a true understanding of their ever-evolving needs, which gives the company the ability to develop technological solutions that address those needs while also advancing the industry. By participating in co-development partnerships like this, REcolorado’s expertise can be leveraged to build meaningful solutions that give brokers and agents the ability to serve their clients as a trusted advisor.
“Our subscribers trust us to listen and understand their needs so we can deliver the data, services, and insights that can be used to serve their clients and advance their businesses,” explains REcolorado President and CEO Gene Millman. “With their ability to transform data into powerful solutions that help brokers and agents work efficiently by making transactions move more smoothly, SkySlope is an ideal partner for us.”
The REcolorado-SkySlope partnership underscores the ongoing movement among MLSs to evolve their services. By embracing collaboration with technology partners and brokerage leaders, MLSs are identifying agent pain points and actively participating in the development of tech-forward solutions that empower their subscribers to serve their clients efficiently and effectively.
“This strategic partnership will develop a service that keeps our subscribers’ needs squarely in focus,” said Millman. “These types of collaborations are essential to creating innovations that will give agents a competitive advantage as the industry shifts.”
Additionally, REcolorado will soon be launching two SkySlope signature solutions, SkySlope Offers and SkySlope Forms, to over 26,000 Colorado real estate professionals. Designed to bring time-saving automation to real estate transactions, these solutions significantly reduce administrative tasks for agents.
About REcolorado
REcolorado is the largest Multiple Listing Service (MLS) in Colorado with over 26,000 professional subscribers who operate throughout the state. Recipient of Inman’s 2023 Innovator Award in the MLS, Association, or Industry category, REcolorado's vision is to empower a trusted, cooperative, and comprehensive real estate marketplace to position customers for success by providing data, technology, and intelligence. The company is REALTOR® owned and serves real estate professionals including the members of Denver Metro Association of REALTORS®, South Metro Denver REALTOR® Association, Mountain Metro Association of REALTORS®, REALTORS® of Central Colorado, and Steamboat Springs Board of REALTORS.
About SkySlope
Established in 2011, SkySlope is the customer experience platform managing real estate transactions from contract to close. Serving over 650,000 real estate professionals across the U.S. and Canada, SkySlope manages nearly 3 million transactions annually. SkySlope is on a mission to build solutions that reshape the real estate industry by creating the most powerful autonomous transaction platform. For more information, visit SkySlope.
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