2006 Commercial Real Estate Report

Waterloo
Cedar Falls
Des Moines
Cedar Rapids
Iowa City
Coralville
cropped area
Values | Trends | Opportunities | Cedar Rapids
| Marion | Hiawatha | Statewide
2006 Commercial Real Estate Report
NAI Iowa Realty Commercial is pleased to present our Eighth Annual Commercial Real Estate Report. The report
summarizes results from ongoing surveys of the office, warehouse, retail and investment submarkets. We gather facts and
figures on over 1,300 properties which collectively represent over 40 million square feet. We then apply our own analysis to
the results of the research so that we may accurately examine the area’s activity and better predict its future performance.
Making the right facilities or investment decision depends on a number of variables. We believe that a comprehensive
analysis is an important element in advising our clients so that they make the wisest and most profitable choices.
A special thank you is extended to all who respond to our requests for information each year and for the efforts of our
summer intern, Craig Byers, a commercial real estate and construction management major at the University of Denver.
Scott G. Byers, CCIM, SIOR
cropped area (back of cover)
President
NAI Iowa Realty Commercial
The information contained in this report is believed to be reliable, but not guaranteed. Reproduction of this publication, in whole or in part, is prohibited without permission of NAI Iowa Realty Commercial.
Investment Recap
In 005 investment real estate benefited from improving
market fundamentals and continuing infatuation with brick
and mortar. Huge amounts of money continued to seek
income producing real estate as a preferred component
of an investment portfolio, in part due to continued
disappointment over stock market returns. Lenders
and investors continued to pour money into property
investments. Liberal bank underwriting – high loan to
values, low debt service coverage, extended fixed rates and
little or no reserves – permitted buyers to leverage their
investments and minimize their risk. The collective outcome
of this hyperactivity was some significant appreciation in
values. Owners that availed themselves of this pricing surge
and chose to sell were able to rack up significant gains.
These gains are included in the various statistical analyses
of real estate performance, which further moves the dial
favorably in comparison with other investment alternatives.
The NCREIF Property Index benchmarks the investment
performance of properties owned by institutional investors,
such as pension funds. It reported an annualized return of
18.7% for all property categories, though the Midwest was
less robust at 13.41%. The national returns were consistent
throughout the apartment (19.68%), industrial (18.98%),
retail (18.66%) and office (18.0%) sections.
Locally, the best indicator of investment performance is the
trend line in cap rates paid by Buyers. The lower the cap rate
(basically the unleveraged rate of return a buyer will earn on
their purchase) that Buyers are willing to accept,
the higher the price a Seller can command.
Since the capital gains profits made by Sellers so
dramatically impacts investment performance, a
2005
Rank
cap rate analysis is revealing.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Shadowood Apartments
Cap Rate Examples —
Retail: Lindale Crossing (retail project anchored by Bed,
Bath & Beyond) sold for a cap rate of 11 in 003, resells at a
8.5 cap in 006, a change that translated into a $,600,000
resale profit.
Offi
ce: Two single tenant (Rockwell Collins) properties, one
on Council Street and one on North River Boulevard, sell for
sub 8 caps.
Industrial: Newly constructed Amana Maytag distribution
facility in North Liberty is already flipped by developer, First
Industrial Trust, at a 7 cap, one year after being developed at
an 8 cap.
Multi-Family: Woodcrest Apartments on Blairs Ferry Road
sell at a 7.5 cap.
2005 CAP RATE RANKS
Property Type
Suburban Multi Family
Urban Multi Family
Regional Mall
Community Mall
Neighborhood Strip
CBD Office
Office/Warehouse
Suburban Office
Bulk
R&D
Manufacturing
CBD Lodging
Airport Lodging
Suburban Lodging
2005 Low
(%)
5
5
5.8
6.3
6.3
5.5
6
6.3
6.3
6
7
7.5
8
8
2005 High
(%)
9
10
10
9.5
10.5
11
10.5
9.8
11
10.5
11
12
12
11.5
2005 Avg.
(%)
6.74
7.03
7.28
7.59
7.69
8
8.01
8.02
8.13
8.41
8.66
9.33
9.56
9.53
Source: Integra Realty Resources, Inc.
1
Values | Trends | Opportunities | Cedar Rapids | Marion | Hiawatha | Statewide
| Investment |
Investment Forecast
Hold: High income apartments, leased up CBD office
High income apartments that have weathered the tenant exodus
2006 will remain a sellers market, and yet investors continue to
into home ownership remain intriguing, both from potential rent
hang on to their core properties (locked in credit tenants with
good income streams). Consequently, particularly
AMONG RESPONDENTS WHO SEE A PRICING BUBBLE IN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE, A
in the relatively restricted Eastern Iowa markets,
LARGE MAJORITY SAY THE BUBBLE IS MOST PRONOUNCED IN THE APARTMENT SECTOR.
buyers will struggle to find acquisitions that
63%
Apartment
make sense. The following sections of this
30%
Retail - grocery/drug anchored center
report provide a more detailed analysis of each
26%
submarket’s investment potential, but as a
Retail - mall
26%
snapshot, we offer the following:
Retail - lifestyle/power center
29%
Office - downtown
Buy: Industrial, land, apartments with
condominium conversion potential
23%
Office - suburban
20%
Undeveloped land
The vacancy continues to evaporate in the
industrial sector, giving Landlords a reliable
income stream and pricing power. Land prices
continue to escalate, particularly along I-380.
Residential development ground has steadily
appreciated as well, though a cooling off of the
housing cycle may temper future price increases.
Higher home prices, rising mortgage rates,
satisfactory job growth and higher single-family construction
costs all bode well for apartments, particularly those that can
eventually be converted to condos.
Sell: Well-tenanted retail, moderate income apartments,
leased up B & C suburban office buildings
18%
Retail - urban/main street
17%
Industrial
15%
Hotel
13%
Mixed-use
Other
6%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
increases and condo conversion perspectives. Leased up CBD
office buildings presumably will benefit from the next leasing
cycle at higher rates, though owners run the risk of fickle tenant
demand for downtown space.
Overall, modest property cash flow improvements can be
expected in most property sectors. Quoting from the 2006
Emerging Trends in Real Estate report issued by the Urban Land
Institute and Price Waterhouse Coopers, “The consensus forecast
suggests that real estate can maintain a relative edge over
stocks and bonds. Expect capital to begin backing off during
the second half of 2006 as a touch of buyer fatigue finally sets in
over interest rate advances, possible cap rate erosion and even
heightened development.
Retail appreciation will be hard to come by at current
stratospheric pricing levels. Additionally, the discount super
centers will continue to erode the underpinnings of smaller
retailers. Lastly, we may be approaching a saturation in retail
supply, particularly of strip centers. Apartments that are aging or
susceptible to the continued allure of affordable “first time buyer”
syndrome won’t be worth the headaches.
Smaller B & C office buildings (10,000 square
What do the Financial Markets Tell Us?
feet or less) in the suburbs continue to suffer Total return percent
from slow demand, alternative workplace
MARKET INDICIES
AS OF
1-YEAR
3-YEAR
5-YEAR
10-YEAR
strategies and lack of building amenities.
3Q 05
Seek an owner-occupant buyer.
Consumer price index
3.21%
3.42%
2.76%
2.49%
2.52%
10-year Treasury bond*
Dow Jones industrial average
Nasdaq composite
NYSE composite
S&P 500
NCREIF index
NAREIT index
investment
4.19%
-0.34%
-1.09%
5.28%
2.77%
13.93%
6.94%
4.20%
7.23%
13.44%
16.17%
12.25%
19.25%
22.63%
4.15%
14.19%
22.45%
17.46%
16.71%
13.19%
24.90%
4.46%
1.91%
-10.14%
1.72%
-1.49%
11.06%
19.43%
5.20%
10.33%
7.50%
8.71%
9.48%
11.68%
14.24%
*Based on average end-of-month T-bond rates
Sources: Morningstar, NCREIF, NAREIT
CBD Office Recap
The most visible manifestation of this approach is the retail
incubator on nd Avenue, although adaptive reuse of existing
structures was found throughout the downtown district. OPN’s
dramatic overhaul of the five year vacant Hutchinson building
and the architectural firm’s announced relocation from the
Great America Building is an eye-opener. Similarly, architectcum-entrepreneur-cum-landlord Steve Emerson is completely
gutting the historic Paramount Building to convert it into the
retro-themed office location of choice. Midway through the
project, the building has pre-lease commitments for 50% of
the 44,000 square feet total available space. Emboldened by
this success, Emerson has placed the 30,000 square foot Palmer
Building on the corner of nd Avenue and 5th Street SE, formerly
occupied by MCI, under contract. Residential developers are
part of the bandwagon as construction has begun in earnest on
the much publicized 46 unit Water Tower Place condominiums.
Drawing on that project’s apparent success, the Smulekoff
interests announced plans to convert its four-story downtown
warehouse into eighteen sizable loft condominiums.
The result of this renovation activity is reflected in improved
occupancy percentages, despite the dearth of any new large
footprint tenants. Though vacancies still remain uncomfortably
high in downtown Cedar Rapids – not unlike most CBD’s across
the country – the incremental improvement is a reflection of
start up businesses and entrepreneurs availing themselves of the
favorable rents available, particularly in the Class B and Class C
office buildings.
Vacancies dropped below 0%, ending the year at 18%. Class A
office space was 90% occupied, though that represented some
slippage over the previous year. Class A rents also regressed
albeit modestly, from $11.40 to $11.5. Class B space rents
3
Average Rents - CBD
$11.25
12
$9.80
$7.32
10
8
6
| Office |
The most recent chapter in the CBD takes a few pages out of
an old playbook. Consider this quote from Jane Jacobs’ 1961
book The Death and Life of Great American Cities; “Cities need
old buildings so badly it is probably impossible for vigorous
streets and districts to grow without them…for really new
ideas of any kind – no matter how ultimately profitable or
otherwise successful some of them might prove to be – there
is no leeway for such chancy trial, error and experimentation
in the high-overhead economy of new construction. Old ideas
can sometimes use new buildings. New ideas must use old
buildings.”
averaged $9.80, although vacancy in class B still topped 0%.
Class C space again registered little change at $7.3 per square
foot, although occupancy improved to 8%.
4
2
0
Class A
Class B
Class C
Definitions —
ClassASpace: Prominent buildings with excellent location,
high-quality tenants and high-quality finish, which are wellmaintained and professionally managed. Class A buildings are
usually new, but can be older buildings that are competitive with
new buildings. Alliant Tower, Great America, MCI Tower, Town
Centre.
ClassBSpace: Buildings having good location, professional
management and fairly high-quality construction and tenancy.
Class B buildings may show slight functional or economic
obsolescence. APAC, Armstrong Centre, True North, US Bank, etc.
ClassCSpace: Older buildings having functional or economic
obsolescence and/or more transient tenancies. Many Class C
buildings have had upgrades to finishes and are distinguished
from Class B primarily by age and layout. Dows Building, Iowa
Building, Guaranty Bank, etc.
TripleNet(NNN)Lease: One in which the tenant assumes all
operating expenses of the lease premises, except roof and
structural repairs.
OperatingExpenses: Outlays pertaining to real estate operation,
exclusive of tenant’s on-going business costs. Includes items
such as real estate taxes, insurance maintenance and repair,
utilities and janitorial services.
Significant Events — CBD
CBD Concentration of Space
(Other* - recreational, church, museum, etc.)
Warehouse
7%
• Alliant Tower sells for $8,000,000 - $106 per square foot
Other*
4%
• Despite construction delay until 009, MidAmerican Energy
building is razed to make way for Federal Courthouse
Industrial
4%
• River Place apartments begin conversion to condos
Retail
13%
• Grant Wood exhibition a colossal success
Office
72%
• Great Furniture Mart positioned for re-development
• Diversity Focus Group to headquarter downtown
• MCI/Verizon merger completed with no adverse ramification
• New and expanded medical buildings dot 8th Avenue
• Restaurants, bars and coffee shops continue to sprout
Office
Retail
Industrial
Warehouse
Other
• Holmes Murphy occupies 9,00 SF in CRBT building.
CBD Forecast
Suburban Office Recap
006 is an important, possibly even a watershed year for the
CBD. By 007, downtown property owners will decide whether
to continue to self impose a twenty year old tax (which is in
addition to regular city and county taxes; and is known as SSMID)
on their properties to help fund improvements to the district.
The property owners will be closely monitoring the support,
both financial and otherwise, that they can expect from the new
city council. If the council places importance on the viability of
the downtown and budgets accordingly, the owners will follow
suit and continue the tax. Lack of council support will likely
doom the program. 006 also will witness the staying power of
the many new bar and restaurant venues in the CBD. The cliché
about success breeding success is particularly apt in the food
and entertainment business. Look for office vacancies continuing
to decline as the relative cost of retrofitted space continues to
be significantly less than new construction in the suburbs. With
increased absorption there typically follows an increase in rental
rates, but that will not be the case in
the CBD for 006; rates will remain flat.
However, if momentum can continue
in a positive direction, rates will
eventually follow.
Real estate analysis and forecasting is to an extent, a debatable
and subjective exercise. Nevertheless, there can be no debate
that the suburban office market has witnessed the most
significant positive accomplishment of the various submarkets
that are the subject of this report. Using baseball parlance, if the
growth within the CBD was the result of some bunts and scratch
singles, the suburban office market was blasting triples and
home runs. Rockwell Collins was Ruthian in its impact, having
barely unpacked the boxes in its new 100,000 square foot facility
on Cimmie Avenue NE before announcing another 100,000
SF building to be built by the Ryan Companies on Rockwell’s
main campus. Extending the baseball analogy – probably
one sentence too many – was the grand slam home run that
nobody saw. When McLeod USA and Aegon announced their
building swap, the suburban office market was rewarded with
two major victories: 1) the 317,000 square foot former McLeod
headquarters did not “go dark” and flood the market with excess
space. Quite the contrary. Aegon
officials now indicate that virtually
the entire structure is slated to
house their employees leaving little
if any vacant space and ) McLeod
USA remains a major tenant with
nearly 100,000 square feet in their
new Boyson Road headquarters; the
former home of Parsons Technology.
8th Avenue Medical Building
office
4
The other major story of the suburban office market emanated
from North Liberty and Coralville. The corridor concept has been
embraced by the real estate community for the last three years
or more, and North Liberty in particular has become a very active
suburban submarket. Companies like Compleware, Revenue
Cycle Partners and National Genecular Institute, as well as Mercy
Medical Center, Liberty and Corridor State Banks have or will
account for over 40,000 square feet of positive net absorption.
Heartland Express’s announced move will further boost these
numbers.
Occupancy levels ended the year at 86%; ie. a 14% vacancy factor.
The NE quadrant, composing over 70% of the available supply of
space, currently has a vacancy level of 1.6%, which is healthier
than its sister quadrants and the nation. Weighted average rents
enter 006 at $10.5 per square foot, a rather sobering 5%
below national average.
Suburban Office Forecast
Rockwell Cimmie Avenue
Although the office market is healthier than it has been in a long
time, the sector still faces headwinds. It still remains more of a
tenant market, despite shrinking vacancies. Development activity
bears watching as it has been basically dormant for the last five
years. The office condominium phenomenon that has captured
developers fancy in other Midwest markets will remain less of a
factor in Eastern Iowa. Speculative building, if any, will amount to
less than 30,000 square feet, centered NE and in Hiawatha.
Significant Events — Suburban Office
• Hall and Hall moves from NE Cedar Rapids to new ,000
square foot offices in Hiawatha
• Former CMF&Z building goes from 90% vacant to 90% full
• McLeod headquarters sells to Aegon for $85.00 per square foot
Rockwell Intertrade
• Positive net absorption tops 150,000 square feet, largely due to
Rockwell Collins continued growth.
Suburban Office Space Concentration
5%
21%
1%
73%
SE
5
office
SW
NW
NE
Retail Recap
Retail once again defied predictions that it had reached the
end of its reign as the most active commercial sector. Retail
properties continued to enjoy substantial gains in property
valuations during the last three years, with one-year appreciation
returns for NCREIF’s index of retail properties reaching 6.38
percent, 1.54 percent and 14.30 percent in the third-quarters
of 003, 004 and 005 respectively. At the same time, cap rates
$8.50 range, whereas the CBD and Marion submarkets came
in at $7.50 per square foot. The submarket with the highest
retail vacancy was easily the CBD at 19%; no other quadrant
registered in double digits. The number of sale transactions for
retail properties slowed to a virtual standstill, due at least in part
to local buyer reluctance to pay sub 7% cap rate prices. One sale
of note was Lindale Crossing. The seller, a Chicago investor who
purchased the property approximately three years earlier for
$6,00,000, resold for $8,800,000; over $00 per square foot!
If the number of properties being sold took a year off, the
number of properties being built most certainly did not. The big
boys continued to flex their muscles, with Wal-Mart and Hy-Vee
recently opening new stores that totaled over 50,000 square
feet. Both companies have on-going projects in the pipeline,
Edgewood Hy-Vee
Marion Super Wal-Mart
Gordmans
The NE quadrant continued to benefit from
95%+ occupancy, as well as substantially
higher rents than any other quadrant with
an average of $11.3 per square foot. The
SE and SW quadrants reported rents in the
retail
Retail Average Rents Comparison
$11.32
$11.38
$10.64
$12.37
NE
$9.02
$8.46
NW
$10.49
Quadrant
have fallen from 8.3 percent to 6.6 percent.
Translation…the same property with a net
operating income of $100,000 that sold for
$1,00,000 in 003, will now sell for over
$1,500,000. The strength in valuation is, of
course, directly related to continued high
occupancies. Nationally the retail vacancy
rate rested at just 7% entering 006, whereas
locally the vacancies were quite comparable
at 7.5%, net of Westdale Mall. And even
Westdale enjoyed a significant increase in
occupancy, thanks to the addition of the
10,000 square foot Steve & Barry’s.
2005
2004
2003
2002
$6.05
$8.50
$6.54
SE
$10.10
$9.92
$8.50
$8.41
$8.66
SW
$10.24
$0.00
$5.00
$10.00
$15.00
6
prices portend in-migration from rural areas. As such, resilient
consumer demand should help bolster the sector. However, rent
rates in Linn County have remained static for nearly three years, a
result of the continuing new supply of store space. Don’t expect
006 to change that dynamic.
Retail Forecast
New development will be notably more restrained in the
ensuing 1 months, although Johnson County will continue
The new strip retail centers will command rents in the
$14.00 triple net range. Big boxes such as Gordmans and
Dick’s Sporting Goods will sport rents in the $11.00 range.
Meanwhile, secondary locations and/or older properties will
have to compete on a price basis, anywhere from $6.00 to
$9.00 per square foot.
The retail real estate investor reads and sees it everywhere…
“Sell now. How much higher can prices get?”
| Retail |
Wal-Mart in Anamosa and Hy-Vee on Wilson Avenue, as well as
new Hy-Vee Drugstores. Lowes continues to move forward, as
does the 00,000 square foot lifestyle/power center known as
Marketplace on First, across from Lindale Mall. Additionally, there
are a half-dozen new higher end strip centers currently under
construction, adding another 100,000 square feet of store space
to the mix. Boyson Road (from C Avenue to Hiawatha) is the
primary gateway to three of the projects, while Edgewood Road
– both north of the Cedar River and south of it – is the address of
four more. The developers engaged in these projects are familiar
names: Hunter Companies, Ambrose, Byers, Drown, Ahmann,
Pfeiler, Butschi and others.
Do you believe cap rates for retail properties will increase or
decrease over the next 24 months?
—Price Waterhouse Coopers
“We expect a first-quarter slowdown in retail”
—John Bucksbaum, CEO of General Growth
No Change
14%
“Do not expect the level of realized returns seen in the
past several years”
—CCIM Institute
“Any number of factors, including fuel prices, could
diminish consumer demand over the next few years, and
subsequently shape the strength of the retail sector”
Decrease
17%
—National Real Estate Investor/Marcus & Millichap
Certainly the drumbeat of the national trade publications
suggests that retail investors should consider heading to
the sidelines. However, the local view isn’t so clear cut. Job
formation continues to strengthen, and even higher fuel
No answer
8%
Source: Reza Investment Group
on a blistering pace for awhile. The modest new
construction activity that does occur in Linn County
will be in familiar locales, although Furniture Row
is rumored to be planning a relocation next to the
Highway 100 Menards. Westdale Mall will continue
to muddle along, and new restaurants will continue
to tempt we Iowans (not wee Iowans).
To what extent do you feel the following issues will impact the
retail investment market?
50%
Overdevelopment
44%
1031 tax code change
40%
Demographic changes in population
38%
Residential housing bubble
36%
Increase in stock market valuation
34%
Personal/corporate tax code change
31%
TIC rules
Changes in political party control
New Federal Reserve chairman
19%
17%
22%
None of the above/no answer
0%
7
20%
Increase
61%
40%
60%
Source: Reza Investment Group
Industrial Recap
| Industrial |
marked by continued strong absorption, occupancy rates in
the 95% range and positive rental growth of 3% to 5%. In the
The industrial sector delivered above average performance
second half of 005, there was positive net absorption nationally
throughout Eastern Iowa all along the I-380 corridor from Cedar
of well over 100 million square feet, the strongest performance
Falls south through Iowa City. Buoyed by the continued strength
in the last 10 years. National occupancy rose 50 basis points, a
in the food sector – think Quaker Oats and General Mills –
very significant improvement. Companies nationally, regionally
coupled with Proctor and Gamble’s remarkable run, and you
and locally are expanding facilities, building new ones or staying
begin to fill up the space that remains available. According
in existing space longer.
to some estimates,
Interest in industrial land
Proctor and Gamble
Industrial & Warehouse Rent Comparison
on the south side of Cedar
NE & SW Quadrants
and Quaker Oats
Rapids is stronger than it’s
combine to occupy over
been in years. This revved
3,000,000 square feet of
up demand will be difficult
$4.78
warehouse space in Linn
NE
to satisfy in the immediate
and Johnson counties.
$4.28
term. There is virtually no
Since some of that space
Industrial
industrially zoned ground
had been built speculatively
Warehouse that is shovel-ready along
or had gone vacant from
I-380 in Linn County.
previous tenant moves,
$3.60
Furthermore, infrastructure
SW
the choices remaining for
$3.77
deficiencies could further
smaller tenants are reduced.
limit growth, specifically
Less vacancy translates into
the utility services and
higher rents and smiling
$0.00 $1.00 $2.00 $3.00 $4.00 $5.00 $6.00
roadbeds on the two major
landlords. Warehouse
East-West arterials south
rents in the NE quadrant
of Highway 30; those being 60th and 76th Avenues. The city will
surpassed the $4.00 per square foot mark for the first time in
also need to address an increase in the sewer capacity south of
three years, averaging $4.8. Vacancy rates dropped to below 5%,
ADM.
both NE and SW. Warehouse rents SW stayed at $3.77, exactly the
same as the previous year.
The northern tier of NE Cedar Rapids and Hiawatha is in a similar
situation. Less than twenty-five acres is zoned and ready for
construction. Given the recent attention that I-380 has received
from national developers and logistics/distribution
companies, lack of available land may retard some
otherwise achievable economic activity.
Industrial Forecast
Industrial/warehouse real estate should enjoy a very solid year,
Cedar Rapids New Construction Starts
$60,000,000
52
On the investment side, prices will remain high, a function
of the improving fundamentals.
$50,000,000
$40,000,000
Significant Events — Industrial
$5
4,
6
53
,2
99
$30,000,000
6
• Engineered Seal Products expanding
$1
6,
75
1,
34
0
00
$1
5,
2002
2003
2004
,7
$1
4
85
,
28
3
$10,000,000
• Amana Maytag facility sold to institutional buyer less
than one year after completion
33
26
68
5,
20
$20,000,000
• Clipper Windpower blows into town, occupying former
Goss plant
$0
2005
• Alternative fuels momentum bodes well for local growth
for stainless steel manufacturers and ADM
8
Multi-Family Forecast
The national fixation and spotlight on the baby-boomers has
missed a very salient point … the Echo Boom generation
(ie. children of boomers) is moving into marriage and homeformation, and in record numbers. When this phenomenon is
coupled with higher interest rates and restrained development
activity, it creates an improvement in multi-family market
fundamentals. To point out the obvious, younger members of the
work force will likely rent vs. buy, at least for the near term.
Overall price appreciation is likely to continue this year,
although an upward change in interest rates creates an
unusual conundrum. Higher home mortgage rates generally
benefit apartment owners, yet increased capital costs puts
downward pressure on appreciation. However, revenue
growth is expected to counteract the effects of higher debt
service, and therefore prices will continue a slow, albeit
unspectacular climb. Development activity will remain
modest. It is noteworthy that less
than 100,000 units were built
nationally in 005, with less than
100,000 again projected for 006.
The dominant theme will continue
to be strong buyer demand
and reasonably flat yields. Private
vs. institutional buyers still accounts
for the vast majority of purchase
activity in Eastern Iowa, including
the aforementioned baby boomers who are seeking relatively
safe income-producing investments prior to retirement. The
uptick in prices is also encouraging the flow of 1031-exchange
capital, as some owners are cashing out built-up equity on
other investments and leveraging these dollars into apartment
properties. Overall, the apartment market, after weathering
historically low interest rates and the subsequent single-family
home boom, is in the midst of a recovery.
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
1-bedroom
9
2-bedroom
676
678
602
610
Multi-Family Average Rental Rates Comparison
517
542
509
520
Average rental rates for apartments rebounded favorably in
005, registering an across the board increase of %. Improving
cash flow was also a function of lower vacancies which had
crept up to 13% in early 005, but has since receded to slightly
above 11%. Though still higher than many comparable U.S.
markets, and nearly double the vacancy numbers at the Johnson
County end of the corridor, occupancy numbers are trending
in the right direction. Sales activity was extremely active, with a
number of large projects exchanging ownership. The 154-unit
Woodcrest complex, for example, sold for $6,000,000, roughly
$38,900 per unit for a project with a preponderance of two
bedroom units. Shadowood, an 84-unit complex on Edgewood
Road also featuring mostly two bedroom units, sold for slightly
over $37,000 per unit. These and other sales translated into cap
rates between 8.5% and 9%, compared to the average cap rate of
9.9% reported last year.
377
375
344
350
Chapel Ridge Apartments
| Multi-Family |
Multi-Family Recap
3-bedroom
2002
2003
2004
2005
– Individual Memberships –
116 Third Street SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
319-363-2337
319-365-9833 • fax
220 Ridgeway Ave., Suite 100
Waterloo, Iowa 50701
319-233-9999
319-233-1521 • fax
www.iowacommercial.com
327 Second Street, Suite 201
Coralville, Iowa 52241
319-354-0989
319-887-6565 • fax