In the News—Week of January 10, 2022
Deal of the Week
A Kentucky based company, sold a self-storage facility in Dayton, Ohio for $8.5 million. Amerco Real Estate, which is the Real Estate affiliate of U-Hual, was the buyer. This transaction was closed by Joel Montemayor, Assistant Vice President and Commercial Escrow Officer, in the Scottsdale office.
National
Buying the farm: Crop prices are high and agriculture properties in demand
Farmland across the nation has been changing hands at a record pace, AZ Big Media reports. And guess who is buying? Farmers mostly. The Farmers National Company set a record for sales volume ($766 million), breaking the record set in 2021 ($750 million). Farmers National Company reports the traditional local farmer is the buyer about three-quarters of the time. “Current commodity markets and strong cash rents provide buyers with the necessary returns to meet their investment criteria while giving them the opportunity to expand operations or add land to their investment portfolio,” Farmers National Company executive Paul Schadegg says.
National
NYC tenants win court case, halt hedge fund’s attempt to end rent control
Stuy Town tenants won a victory in court that might put the kibosh on landlords’ hopes of deregulating rents of more apartments in New York City, The Real Deal reports. A state court judge ruled against hedge fund giant Blackstone Group, which claimed previous court settlements and agreements with the city allowed it to raise rents on 6,200 apartments. Blackstone had not raised the rents. Supreme Court Judge Robert Reed wrote that Blackstone’s arguments were “based on a misconception of the law.”
National
Booming Dallas industrial market picked up speed at the end of 2022
Dallas-Fort Worth has enjoyed an industrial building boom the past four years. And the pace went into overdrive in the last months of 2022, The Dallas Morning News reports. Figures from Avison Young show 87 million square feet of industrial space in the development pipeline at the end of 2022. “It is this strong demand and affordability that has been pushing this development pipeline to new highs as the region advances its position as a key U.S. logistics hub,” says Greg Langston, principal and managing director for Avison Young’s Dallas office.
Arizona
Phoenix metro area projected No. 6 for apartment construction in 2023
The Phoenix metro area ranks No. 6 in the country for apartment construction in the coming year, AZ Big Media reports. Figures from Yardi Matrix show multifamily construction nationwide is expected to hit a 50-year peak in 2023. About 420,000 rental units are expected to be completed this year nationwide. Almost 16,000 are projected to build in the Phoenix metro area. New York leads the country, ending the Dallas-Fort Worth’s four-year run as the leader. “The construction industry is finally returning to pre-pandemic levels of activity but is still being hampered by three familiar challenges: labor shortages; material costs and availability; and supply chain issues,” says Doug Ressler, manager of business intelligence at Yardi Matrix.
Arizona
BLM to hold meetings for public comment on 600 MW solar project
The Bureau of Land Management will hold two meetings for public comment on a proposed solar project in southern La Paz County, PV magazine reports. An affiliate of Hanwha Energy USA Holdings, 174 Power Global, has proposed a 600-megawatt project about 85 miles west of Phoenix on 3,495 acres of public lands managed by the BLM and 38 acres of La Paz County land. The hearings will be held 5 to 7 p.m. Jan. 11 at Tonopah Valley High School, Tonopah, and online 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Jan. 17. The project was known as Taurus Solar when the developer submitted the program in 2019. It has been renamed The Jove Solar Project.
Energy and Efficiency
Land rush at sea? Developers show interest in off-show wind farms
Energy companies and joint ventures have committed $757 million to develop five floating wind farms off the coast of California, Oregon Public Broadcasting reports. Observers believe this is the beginning of a major construction boom in northern California. “It’s a brand-new industry,” says Jeff Hunerlach, a building union leader based in Humboldt County. Off-shore wind farms are common in Europe, and some have been built in other waters of the United States but not the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington. “The best wind potential in the country, if not the world, is off the Northern California and Southern Oregon coast,” Princeton University researcher Jesse Jenkins says. “It’s an important resource that the region is looking to tap into.”
