Buyer Plans Commercial Development of PAD-Zoned Land in Chandler Corporate Center

Phoenix, AZ – Colliers International in Greater Phoenix negotiated the sale of approximately eight acres of PAD-zoned land in Chandler, Arizona, for $2,433,261 million or approximately $6.98 per square feet. The parcel is located north of the northeast corner of Juniper Drive and Chandler Boulevard within Chandler Corporate Center.

Greg Hopley, executive vice president in Colliers’ Scottsdale office, represented the buyer, DPMG Juniper LLC, a Phoenix-based investor. DPMG’s plans call for future commercial development of approximately 100,000 square feet. Zoning allows for office and industrial use.

Paul Sieczkowski, SIOR, executive vice president in Colliers’ Phoenix office, represented the seller, Hull Farms, Inc.

“This was an opportunity for the buyer to acquire one of the few available commercial lots in the west Chandler area,” said Hopley. “In addition to the highly desirable location in Chandler Corporate Center, DPMG recognized the strength of the Chandler market, which offers an exceptionally strong employment base and demographics.”

Corporate neighbors include DaVita Rx, Creative Leather Furniture, Garmin, Inc., Broadcom and Vantiv. The site provides easy access to the Loop 101, Loop 202 and I-10 Freeways and is minutes from Chandler’s high-tech corridor, which is home to major employers, such as Intel, Orbital ATK, Avnet, Microchip Technologies and NXP Semiconductors.

Chandler is one of the fastest growing cities in the country, with the addition of nearly 100,000 young, educated, and affluent citizens in the last 10 years; and it boasts a strong, high tech employment base that attracts and retains high quality employees.

The National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) is reporting its measure of lot shortages hit a new record in May. In answer to special questions on the survey for the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, 64 percent of builders reported that the supply of lots in their markets was low or very low—up from 62 percent last year and the highest the lot shortage percentage has been since NAHB began collecting the information in 1997.

Perhaps most notable is that builders reported this record shortage at a time when new homes are being started at a rate of under 1.2 million a year.  in 2005, when total housing starts were over 2.0 million, the share of builders reporting a shortage of lots was “only” 53 percent.

The percentage varies somewhat, based on region of the country, size of builder, and type of lot.  Although the categories are seldom defined precisely, builders often think in terms of A, B and C lots, based on the desirability of their location.  As you might expect, the shortage tends to be most acute for A lots.  In the May 2016 survey, 69 percent of the builders said A lots were in short supply, compared to 60 percent for B lots, and 47 percent for C lots.

Often, differences show up most clearly in the share of builders who report the supply of lots in their markets is “very low.”   For example, the 69 percent of builders reporting low or very-low lot supply in the West is only marginally above the 62 percent in the Midwest and 64 percent in the South, and actually slightly below the 68 percent in the Northeast.  But a full 39 percent of builders in the West characterized lot supply as very low, far above the percentages in the other three regions.

Compared to lot supply in general, builders are more likely to report a very-low share of A lots, especially in the Northeast, Midwest and South.  When the lot supply question is restricted to A lots, these three regions more closely resemble the West.

Perhaps surprisingly, lot shortages were also reported somewhat more often by larger home builders.  Overall, 70 percent of builders with over 100 starts reported a low or very-low supply of lots, compared to 65 percent for builders with 6 to 99 starts, and 62 percent of builders with fewer than 6 starts.

One factor may be that builders with fewer starts are more likely to build one-at-a-time custom homes on land already owned by the homeowner, where lot supply in the area is less of an issue.  Larger companies may also be looking to build in multiple locations within an area, making them more likely to run into a shortage if it exists anywhere within the broader area.

In any event, larger builders are also more likely to report shortages for A lots specifically.  In the 2016 survey, 78 percent of builders with 100-plus starts reported a shortage of A lots, compared to 74 to 75 percent of builders with 6 to 99 starts, and 59 percent of builders with fewer than 6 starts.  Part of the reason the percentage is that low for small builders is that quite a few of them checked “Don’t Know/Not Sure” when asked about lots of a particular type (A, B or C).  NAHB includes “Don’t Knows” in the base when calculating percentages to avoid overstating the shortages.

To read the full report click here.

By Melissa Swader, SVN | Desert Commercial Advisors

Phoenix, AZ – Commercial prices may be up in the valley but it has not deterred any developers or business owners away from leasing commercial space or purchasing land to develop more restaurants and entertainment options. According to US Capital Trends, the market indicates that the Southwest transactions reported in Phoenix in Q1 were $357.8M in deal volume.  I could subsequently follow that report with a series of numbers and statistics from other reporting outlets, but I won’t.  What I will focus on is the barrage of new places that will be providing flavor, fashion and entertainment.

Let’s start with our very own SVN, Desert Commercial advisors Rommie Mojahed and Mary Nollenberger who believed in the potential of a partially constructed development surrounded by dirt, known as the Shoppes at Chandler Heights.  What was once the subject of many complaints from nearby Chandler residents is now one of the greatest Cinderella developments in the valley. It is under new ownership and now being referred to as Chandler Crossings.

After closing the sale of the new development for $5.425M, Mojahed and Nollenberger continued to represent the new owner and has brought in new tenants such Basis Schools,  Austin-based tenant Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, Dairy Queen, and Blue 32 Sports Grill which is slated to open in August of 2016 totaling $19.6 million in deals between the new  tenants.

Phoenix is also feeling the love with valley-based local mattress business Tuft & Needle who has overtly campaigned their “WE BELIEVE IN PHX” on an outside billboard located downtown.  While co-founders, JT Marino and Daehee Park state multiple reasons why they endorse Phoenix, the city’s Community & Economic Development Department stands behind them to help support the economic growth in downtown Phoenix.

From Austin, Texas to Phoenix and now the Windy Cindy of deep dish pies, the Chicagoans that now live in Phoenix are probably saying cheese with delight.  The wait is over!  Yes, Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria is finally here. The Chicago-based family business started in 1971 and the traditions have lived on; taking up restaurant space in Uptown Plaza off Central Avenue and Camelback Road.

Malnati’s Director of Marketing, Mindi Kaplan is really excited about the new restaurant opening and is confident that everyone will enjoy the restaurant. “We have had such a great welcome from the community. The people are really excited.”  As they should be and in this case, “Say Cheese” has a completely new meaning because when you walk in, dine-in customers are greeted by an entirely lit up wall that reads just that.

“Malnati’s is about family internally as we are about taking care of other families; the ones that come to visit us here,” Kaplan explains further that there are 170 new employees to join their Phoenix team and they hope to open between 8-10 pizzerias in the valley.  If you are looking for fresh deep dish pizza “pie”, then you will have to check it out and judge it yourself. Not only do they use fresh tomatoes, they also use a water-filtration system to produce similar water to what they use in Chicago to make their dough. You will have plenty of space to choose from, the 8,300 combined indoor and patio space can seat families, parties, charity events, and more. Great job, Lou!

Driving down Camelback Road has its perks in the retail and fashion industry as well.  The Shops at Town & Country Shopping Center has also been redeveloped over the last year.  The Container Store has opened on the corner of 20^th St. & Camelback Rd. taking over previous space from The FedEx Store, Sleep America, and Chili’s.  This 2015 $789 million-dollar revenue-making retailer sits next to the new popular fashion retailer, Forever 21.  While the fashion chain is still under construction, it is just another reason why the Central Phoenix business district is trending.

From your bed to your “Bling” and everything in between, commercial real estate is in demand no matter how you look at it.  Wouldn’t you agree?