New Superpower City? (from CultureMap)

[Subdude]

Interesting stats on just how big the building boom is.  All I can say is "wow".

 

 

When it comes to construction cranes, Houston is leading the nation.

Houston has more than 50 office buildings under construction totaling 17 million square feet, far more than any other city in America, according to the CBRE commercial real estate firm.

Houston has more than twice as much office construction as the No. 2 city — New York.

The number of carpenters, bricklayers and painters working in Houston right now is off the charts. The total of building permits issued in September was the highest monthly total ever, says the Greater Houston Partnership. Houston’s commercial construction permits were up a whopping 193 percent last month.

To say optimism is high in the Houston office market is an understatement. In addition to the buildings actually under construction, there are more than 100 proposed office projects on the drawing boards — which may or may not get built.

 

So, is Houston getting overbuilt? Do we have a bubble developing?

“The short answer is no,” says office leasing veteran Sanford Criner of CBRE.

The construction surge is tapering off, Criner says. As long as the spigot slows down the flow of new projects pretty soon, there shouldn’t be any probably filling up the new buildings, Criner believes.

Houston’s economy leads the nation in job growth. Almost 120,000 new jobs were created over the last 12 months — a huge boom in hiring and that means companies need more office space.

 

http://houston.culturemap.com/news/real-estate/10-25-14-americas-new-superpower-city-houston-leaves-new-york-in-its-dust-in-key-building-metric-tops-in-us-by-wide-margin/

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Hasek]

so at what point do lower rents draw enough companies to push rents higher..?

[Luminare]

so at what point do lower rents draw enough companies to push rents higher..?

 

The big reason why rents are so high right now is because even with the EXPLOSION of building which this article suggests (and is of course confirmed if you have driven anywhere around town lol) it still, amazingly enough, isn't enough to satisfy demand. You raise prices when your supply is low and demand is high. You lower your prices when supply is high and demand is low. Basic economics from someone who isn't an export on economics lol.