San Diego
Top 6 takeaways from the National Multi-Housing Council Conference
NMHC is the place where the leaders of the apartment industry come together to guide their future success - the NMHC annual conference is the largest gathering throughout the year .
It is not that hard to get a couple of Boston guys to go to San Diego in January , but we suffered through it and brought back our top takeaways from the conference :
No . 1 Cautious optimism | Investors are bullish on fundamentals and the economy , but more conservative with underwriting and more selective about which properties they chase . There is still more capital that wants to be invested in Boston then available product to buy – we expect sales volume to be flat to slightly up in 2017 .
No . 2 Resilient market due to strong fundamentals | Strong demand from population growth , income growth , job growth and household formation continue to provide strong absorption of new supply .
No . 3 Boston still a top 3 city for multifamily investment | We are lucky to be in Boston . Though we have significant downtown supply , we are still not building enough units to match demand , making us one of the strongest markets in the country . Our base economy of medical and education provides unparalleled stability during any potential downturn . Of all the investors we met with , not a single one is pulling back capital allocation targets for Boston multifamily .
No . 4 Value-add is the property type du jour | Nearly all investors , large and small , mentioned a desire to buy “ value-add ”. However , the definition can be very narrow , as many buyers want early-2000 vintage properties inside of Route 128 .
No . 5 Core investors will move towards the suburbs to chase higher rent growth potential | Close-in suburban assets will see more competition in 2017 as investors seem to be more comfortable projecting growth outside of the urban core . Interest rates have not dramatically moved core yield targets for multifamily on the Boston Metro .
No . 6 Despite consistent struggles off the tee , Mike still has the superior golf game to Travis . theinvestor . jll 9