Regent Square: Mixed-Use On Allen Parkway At Dunlavy St.

[Luminare]

[thatguysly]

Surface lot coming soon

[Luminare]

1 hour ago, thatguysly said:

Surface lot coming soon

 

Gigantic Mattress Firm

[jgriff]

Lots of activity on site today. All the trees were taken down.

[por favor gracias]

On 10/31/2019 at 8:13 AM, Texasota said:

If this and Hanover actually deliver around the same time... transformational is an understatement.

Pretty sure this is gonna end up being a Fajita Pete's

[hindesky]

The entire area they own on the south side of W. Dallas has been torn down, I think this might actually be starting after so many years of waiting.

[Highrise Tower]

Fence is going in.

 

 

 

[Urbannizer]

 

[jgriff]

https://www.chron.com/business/real-estate/article/An-abundance-of-apartments-could-overwhelm-a-14809090.php#item-85307-tbla-3

 

[X.R.]

3 hours ago, jgriff said:

https://www.chron.com/business/real-estate/article/An-abundance-of-apartments-could-overwhelm-a-14809090.php#item-85307-tbla-3

 

 

Only real relevant info: ""If you look at the downsizing of some of the oil and gas companies, we’re not seeing the job growth in the 'A category' right now. And we’ve still got a significant number of units that are under construction to be delivered in the next 18 months," Greystar's Stacy Hunt said in a recent interview. "Today there are still a lot of properties, particularly inside the Loop, that are giving two months free rent."

 

One would think this would be a great area for condos/townhome/apartments mixed development, but its mostly apartments now. It is kinda nuts that Houston will go from a smattering of apartments there to 1600 apartments within a few years. That influx, particularly since they are high-end almost exclusively, is a bit worrisome as they note because how much of Houston really has 2k+ a month for an apartment. 

[Luminare]

34 minutes ago, X.R. said:

 

Only real relevant info: ""If you look at the downsizing of some of the oil and gas companies, we’re not seeing the job growth in the 'A category' right now. And we’ve still got a significant number of units that are under construction to be delivered in the next 18 months," Greystar's Stacy Hunt said in a recent interview. "Today there are still a lot of properties, particularly inside the Loop, that are giving two months free rent."

 

One would think this would be a great area for condos/townhome/apartments mixed development, but its mostly apartments now. It is kinda nuts that Houston will go from a smattering of apartments there to 1600 apartments within a few years. That influx, particularly since they are high-end almost exclusively, is a bit worrisome as they note because how much of Houston really has 2k+ a month for an apartment. 

 

m.e.h . I can understand the worry. However, this is east of River Oaks, south of the Washington Ave Corridor, north of Montrose, west of Downtown, right on Buffalo Bayou, near Memorial Park, and on Allen Parkway. This area was destined to be this way. You can't tell me with everything going around it that this area will not sell and for the prices they will be asking. Along with that people also forget who normally moves into these and thats people looking to make that next jump from a so-so apartment to a nice area with a much higher quality apartment. If anything this poses a question about apartments that are older and of lower quality particular ones built 30-40 years ago. Those 30-40 year old apartments will be vacated by those moving up the ladder, and will be the new homes for those who are just moving into the city either from the outside or the burbs, or those from poor neighborhoods who want easy entry into better neighborhoods on a budget. Then the cycle repeats. This is why we have 90% occupancy, yet at the same time we keep getting more and more new people into the city. I just moved some friends into Montrose a couple weeks ago, and while perception is that its hard to find something in Montrose it really isn't because of all the new construction going on its shifting those who used to live in the older apartments because that was the only thing around, apartments wise. Build new to draw the people with money to leave older places and then the older places will market to sell to those who have little money so they can remain operation and cover costs. Rinse and repeat.

 

EDIT: Of course it goes without saying that it might be the case that even with what I just said the market might be getting a bit too hot for the actual rate at which people are shifting, and that is okay. They market will readjust and cool off and then will get hot again.

Edited November 5, 2019 by Luminare

[mattyt36]

There are very few large complexes 30-40 years old inside the loop due to the sewage-related building restrictions in the 1970s (probably ended up being a good thing in the 1980s). I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that the central core (inside Shepherd) had an dearth of real multifamily options until the last 10-15 years when compared with other cities.
 

I’d imagine the market that is going to be most pressured is the West Loop as well as some of the older Midtown units (but are there really that many?).

[X.R.]

14 hours ago, mattyt36 said:

There are very few large complexes 30-40 years old inside the loop due to the sewage-related building restrictions in the 1970s (probably ended up being a good thing in the 1980s). I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that the central core (inside Shepherd) had an dearth of real multifamily options until the last 10-15 years when compared with other cities.
 

I’d imagine the market that is going to be most pressured is the West Loop as well as some of the older Midtown units (but are there really that many?).

 

@Luminare is right in that there are a number of much older units. Also, surprisingly(?),  there are a bunch of ooold townhomes/condos/smaller apartments all along Westheimer/Bissonnet. There are pockets of older facilities all over the inner-loop that are being targeted by real estate companies as easy acquisitions for the opportunity to update and flip. So I can see that. I agree alot of the pressure will be on the West loop where developers are really pushing for that oil and gas crowed.

 

And I also agree with Lum that you would think people would pay an incredibly pretty penny to have a house or apartment there, so I get why these are "luxury" apartments versus just regular apartments. Its incredibly puzzling that the Bayou area wasn't developed before. Having grown up on the south side of Houston, I always assumed that was where the rich people lived, but when I started to visit the park and that area more frequently I realized they were...just empty lots and fields. Weird. Just odd there wasn't significant development there before.

Edited November 6, 2019 by X.R.

[mattyt36]

Is the market for these new apartments really those living in pre-1980s small complexes or 1990s garden style apartments, though? I doubt it. If anything, I smell redevelopment opportunity a la Memorial Heights.
 

In any case it will certainly be interesting to see how what I’m calling the “Central Core” market (inside of Shepherd) has evolved 10 years from now.

[Angostura]

On 11/5/2019 at 11:58 PM, mattyt36 said:

There are very few large complexes 30-40 years old inside the loop due to the sewage-related building restrictions in the 1970s (probably ended up being a good thing in the 1980s). I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that the central core (inside Shepherd) had an dearth of real multifamily options until the last 10-15 years when compared with other cities.
 

I’d imagine the market that is going to be most pressured is the West Loop as well as some of the older Midtown units (but are there really that many?).

 

 

I think this is right. The sewer moratorium caused a major disruption in what would normally have been the geographic distribution of multi-family development. As a result, places like Montrose, Midtown, and the Heights were significantly under-built. This is now being corrected.

 

W/r/t demand, about 37% of US households are 1-person, and another 31% are childless couples (both married and co-habitating). While not all of these people want to live in apartments, a lot of them are perfectly content to, at least for a number of years.

 

BTW, only about 21% of households are married couples with children, which is probably less than half of what most people would guess.

[Luminare]

3 hours ago, Angostura said:

 

 

I think this is right. The sewer moratorium caused a major disruption in what would normally have been the geographic distribution of multi-family development. As a result, places like Montrose, Midtown, and the Heights were significantly under-built. This is now being corrected.

 

W/r/t demand, about 37% of US households are 1-person, and another 31% are childless couples (both married and co-habitating). While not all of these people want to live in apartments, a lot of them are perfectly content to, at least for a number of years.

 

BTW, only about 21% of households are married couples with children, which is probably less than half of what most people would guess.

 

Didn't know about this "sewer moratorium" where could I go to read more about this? Why was this the case?

[Ross]

32 minutes ago, Luminare said:

 

Didn't know about this "sewer moratorium" where could I go to read more about this? Why was this the case?

Here's one link https://books.google.com/books?id=gY5eH5BtqkYC&pg=PA236&lpg=PA236&dq=houston+sewer+restrictions+1970%27s&source=bl&ots=Ny4xdAFy4v&sig=ACfU3U1VBZpXaykg7i2oB-r_iUFDsXQFmw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiHpNTI_trlAhUOQK0KHYhiA28Q6AEwDXoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=houston%20sewer%20restrictions%201970's&f=false

 

 

[s3mh]

I think the kind of money that is currently flowing into Houston to build these projects is not at all concerned about short term occupancy rates and whether the oil and gas market is up or down or in between.  We are getting big money following into Houston from national and international equity funds.  They are more concerned with the movement of interest rates, stock market valuations and national and international real estate trends.  Over building in Houston in a low interest rate environment may very well be a better bet than an overvalued stock market or other real estate markets that are overvalued.  And gone are the days when local guys would live or die by whether the development leased up within a few years.  

[mattyt36]

This is a great summary of the sewage moratorium

 

http://offcite.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2010/02/TradingToilets_Neuhaus_Cite1.pdf

[jgriff]

All this talk about sewage reminded me of this paper I read a few years ago about historical sewage treatment in Houston. It seems like a boring subject but is actually very interesting to me. 
 

https://edocs.publicworks.houstontx.gov/documents/divisions/utilities/history_waste_water_operations.pdf

[Angostura]

On 11/8/2019 at 10:29 PM, mattyt36 said:

This is a great summary of the sewage moratorium

 

http://offcite.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2010/02/TradingToilets_Neuhaus_Cite1.pdf

 

 

Whenever I hear people say that Houston's sprawl is a result of our lack of zoning, it drives me nuts. Our least "sprawl-y" neighborhoods are pretty much all laid out in the late 19th, early 20th centuries. The lack of density in Houston's core is almost entirely the result of regulation, not the lack of it:

 

- sewer moratorium pushing multi-family development outside of 610

 

- Chapter 42's setback requirements making the strip center the most economically efficient retail format and outlawing zero-setback construction.

 

- Chapter 26's parking minimums requiring standalone retail development to dedicate 50-75% of land area to parking.

 

- Minimum lot sizes (only reformed in the 90's)

 

 

Our lack of zoning is now allowing Houston to unwind some of these bad choices, so that we can achieve a more appropriate activity density in central neighborhoods.

[Twinsanity02]

In addition, other cities also have sprawl: DFW, Kansas City, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Indianapolis,LA. All had the great majority of their metro growth and design after the War when families were larger, folks purchased automobiles and wanted to live in single family houses. It's less expensive and roomier to live in the suburbs when you have children to raise. No children or just one child, the city may be more affordable.

[X.R.]

On 11/8/2019 at 6:21 AM, Angostura said:

 

 

I think this is right. The sewer moratorium caused a major disruption in what would normally have been the geographic distribution of multi-family development. As a result, places like Montrose, Midtown, and the Heights were significantly under-built. This is now being corrected.

 

W/r/t demand, about 37% of US households are 1-person, and another 31% are childless couples (both married and co-habitating). While not all of these people want to live in apartments, a lot of them are perfectly content to, at least for a number of years.

 

BTW, only about 21% of households are married couples with children, which is probably less than half of what most people would guess.

 

This sewer issue, which has been mentioned before, but not discussed in too much depth, actually makes sense when you think of how much sewer work the city is currently doing in Midtown (Caroline is destroyed, and various other streets have work being done on the weekends). And to an extent in the Museum District (part of the package for these apartments to move into the District usually involves them paving small ditches and doing sewer work). And I guess I never thought of Montrose/Muesum District/Midtown as under-built, just that a new need has arisen. But now it makes sense why people are stumbling over themselves to dump trucks of money in these areas, as if playing catch-up. 

[Luminare]

29 minutes ago, X.R. said:

 

This sewer issue, which has been mentioned before, but not discussed in too much depth, actually makes sense when you think of how much sewer work the city is currently doing in Midtown (Caroline is destroyed, and various other streets have work being done on the weekends). And to an extent in the Museum District (part of the package for these apartments to move into the District usually involves them paving small ditches and doing sewer work). And I guess I never thought of Montrose/Muesum District/Midtown as under-built, just that a new need has arisen. But now it makes sense why people are stumbling over themselves to dump trucks of money in these areas, as if playing catch-up. 

 

I've said it before in this forum, but if there is one thing holding back Houston from truly being a world class city, its infrastructure in all of its forms. If we can properly invest in infrastructure then there isn't anything this city can't do, or be like the other great cities. We just have to make that kind of civil commitment. I think its already starting to happen, but more can be done.

[j_cuevas713]

3 hours ago, Luminare said:

 

I've said it before in this forum, but if there is one thing holding back Houston from truly being a world class city, its infrastructure in all of its forms. If we can properly invest in infrastructure then there isn't anything this city can't do, or be like the other great cities. We just have to make that kind of civil commitment. I think its already starting to happen, but more can be done.

Agree. That's really all that's missing. The kickoff of Shepherd and Durham is huge. 

[pablog]

3 hours ago, Luminare said:

 

I've said it before in this forum, but if there is one thing holding back Houston from truly being a world class city, its infrastructure in all of its forms. If we can properly invest in infrastructure then there isn't anything this city can't do, or be like the other great cities. We just have to make that kind of civil commitment. I think its already starting to happen, but more can be done.

Infrastructure is really broad, is there any 2 pieces that fall underneath that umbrella you believe are the most necessary?

[jgriff]

From West Clay at Woodhead. 
 

Edit: Having 2 dogs on a leash makes it hard to keep your fingers out of the photo.

Edited November 11, 2019 by jgriff

[Angostura]

18 hours ago, X.R. said:

 

And I guess I never thought of Montrose/Muesum District/Midtown as under-built, just that a new need has arisen. But now it makes sense why people are stumbling over themselves to dump trucks of money in these areas, as if playing catch-up. 

 

The center of gravity for development was closer to the Galleria than the CBD in large part because that was where you could build apartments. This probably led to some of the multi-centric development pattern we have (uptown, energy corridor, Greenspoint, etc.) rather than more jobs concentrating in the CBD. Now that the supply of central-neighborhood housing is allowed to meet demand, we've seen a LOT of densification in the last couple decades, and probably more to come.

[mattyt36]

Does anyone know when the sewage moratorium ended?

[Luminare]

2 hours ago, Angostura said:

 

The center of gravity for development was closer to the Galleria than the CBD in large part because that was where you could build apartments. This probably led to some of the multi-centric development pattern we have (uptown, energy corridor, Greenspoint, etc.) rather than more jobs concentrating in the CBD. Now that the supply of central-neighborhood housing is allowed to meet demand, we've seen a LOT of densification in the last couple decades, and probably more to come.

 

Ironically in the end while this will make it a challenge infrastructurally to move people from center to center, the multitude of centers/urban cores we have actually makes our city rather unique. Interesting the cause and effects regulations have both positive and negative.