Remember What Will Follow Apartments in Greater New Haven

 New Haven just keeps adding to its apartment inventory.  Some are retrofitted from other uses, some are built new, and all seem to be filling up.  Some of the short-term demand could be because more students are choosing to live off-campus during the pandemic.  Students from other countries, particularly, may be here even if there are no in-person classes, or if their cohort is not in residence at this time.  

Whatever the cause, we just seem to keep building.  Remember the old line from the movie Field of Dreams:  "Build it and they will come"?  Whether or not that is true, the real estate sequel, had it been made, would have reminded the characters that after they come, they will need other things.  Despite the tremendous growth in on-line shopping, there are necessities of life--and last-minute purchases--that require bricks and mortar stores and restaurants. So it stands to reason that, with new apartments everywhere--retail will follow.  

Smart investors should be looking now for what tenants want nearby, especially if they are students.  Gyms, spas, takeout places, and pet businesses are more popular than ever, but, even without bars and nightclubs, other establishments will do well.  Once the weather gets colder, bicycle commuters, walkers, and train riders will be picking up supplies on their way home from work, and they won't be going as far to do so. 

Even in these uncertain times, downtown New Haven is growing, and there is plenty of room for entrepreneurs to join the apartment dwellers.  And don't forget to think outside the box--our rich history as a manufacturing city has left us with plenty of interesting spaces, and they should all be considered.  Act now, and reap the rewards in the years to come!

Connecticut is Open for Business

Governor Lamont is reaching out to businesses in a variety of ways.  To begin with, he's a businessperson himself, and therefore presumably is sympathetic to the costs and travails of doing business here.  In addition,  he has a highly visible team of economic experts, including ex-CEO Indira Nooyi of Pepsi, and Jim Smith, ex-CEO of Webster Bank.  He has recruited entrepeneur Josh Geballe as CAO, who in turn has brought in developer Noel Petra to manage the State's real estate holdings.  Manufacturer Colin Cooper is putting a spotlight on CT manufacturing.

All of this goes a long way toward making the business community feel welcome.  In addition, he's talking up our assets and promoting optimism.  He's also loosened up on the State's "debt diet", although it remains to be seen which way that cuts; it could promote growth, or just increase State spending.  He seems serious about infrastructure and transportation.  What more is a Governor to do?

He needs help from the Legislature, however.  They don't always seem to share his priorities.  He can't un-elect them, so he has to work with them.  Right now, his agenda seems bogged down over tolls.  Let's hope that his broader vision prevails, and that our representatives do what they should--make Connecticut competitive.

Two Recent Quick Sales

For those of you who think that it's impossible to sell an industrial building in Connecticut, we have good news!  Although it is often reported that manufacturing, and most industry, is dying in our region, industrial buildings are still desirable.  It may be that they are more often used as warehouse space, or flex space of some kind, or even converted to residential use, but they are being shown, and bought.

We have closed two buildings in the past week that went into contract within two weeks of being listed.  They were both industrial free-standing buildings, and they were in two different parts of our market, and they both attracted calls,showings, and offers right away.  They were priced correctly, and were in the "sweet spot" of 5,000-15,000 sf, with docks and overhead doors.

If you've been waiting to see what will happen, wait no more, because investors are also active in our market, and users won't want any extra competition.  Some people have needed more space for years now, and finally are pulling the trigger.  Others are opening new businesses or territories, and some are just betting on the come that prices will increase.

 It almost doesn't matter what reason you find most compelling.  It just matters that sellers know to list now, and buyers know to act now.  You'll be glad that you did.

CERC survey: View of CT realty upbeat

Written by Gregory Seay

Connecticut landlords and other realty professionals feel better about the near term prospects for the residential-property market than they do the commercial-space sector, a new survey shows.

According to the Connecticut Economic Resource Center (CERC), its latest SiteFinder semi-annual online survey of Connecticut commercial real estate conditions indicates that respondents are generally positive about markets, except for the office market and overall economy.

The 72 respondents included brokers (65 percent) and economic development professionals (22 percent) from Connecticut and out-of-state. Almost one-third of respondents (32 percent) were from New Haven County.

Respondents generally rated local market conditions as satisfactory, with a majority saying the industrial, investment, and residential markets in their respective geographic areas were "excellent" or "good" (53 percent, 50 percent, and 62 percent, respectively).

Respondents were more pessimistic about their local office markets, with one-quarter rating it as "poor" and 56 percent rating it as "fair."

At the state level, residential was the only market for which a majority (51 percent) said it was "excellent" or "good." One-quarter (25 percent) said the office market was "poor," and one-third (30 percent) said the overall economy was "poor."

Respondents are also seeing tangible improvement in the real estate markets in the state. Over half of respondents (57 percent) reported seeing an increase in buyer interest or inquiries compared to this time last year.

Nearly half (48 percent) also reported an increase in the number of deals. There was an increase of those reporting increased number of deals (from 38 percent) and buyer interest or inquiries (from 48 percent) from the first quarter of 2016.

"As the need for large office space continues to decline, the demand for modern industrial manufacturing and distribution space continues to increase,'' said CERC Real Estate Program Manager Erron Smith. "End-users have communicated that they are willing to pay a little more, if it translates into occupying a space that can satisfy their operational needs."

More than half of respondents thought sale prices for industrial, retail, investment, and residential properties would increase in the state in the next three months (63 percent, 51 percent, 61 percent, and 57 percent, respectively). Most expected this gain to be less than 5 percent, but more than 10 percent of respondents thought there would be a gain of at least 5 percent in sale prices for residential.

"There was a similar pattern for lease prices, with expected gains in sale prices for industrial, retail, investment and residential, and a loss for office," said Alissa DeJonge, CERC's research vice president.

Nonprofit CERC is a public-private partnership that provides economic development services. Its SiteFinder Real Estate Survey measures the health of Connecticut's commercial real estate market.