This Week's Houston Deal Sheet

Houston multifamily rents have been remarkably stable recently, according to the latest RENTCafé report, using Yardi Matrix data.

While U.S. apartments averaged a $47 increase in rents from August 2018 to August 2019, Houston rates have only gone up $10. RENTCafé called this stability “remarkable.” But Houston has picked up the pace; rents rose $2 to $1,106 from July to August. That $2 jump was right on average for the country, though it was an acceleration for Houston and a deceleration for the rest of the U.S. (It was the lowest monthly increase since February.) The rest of Texas beat the national average, with Austin rents jumping $10 month over month, Dallas up $3, Fort Worth $8 and San Antonio increasing $4. 

Nationwide, multifamily rents average $1,472. The slowdown in national rent growth isn’t surprising; RENTCafé reports August typically has a seasonal slowdown.

EXECS

Lauren Kelch joined Patrinely Group as vice president of property management. She will supervise all property management operations for the company, leveraging her 12 years of experience, including stints at Hines, Crescent Real Estate Equities and Chevron Business and Real Estate Services.

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Rob Bridges joined Avison Young as principal and vice president of property management. He will be launching the property management service line for AY in Texas and will build up the practice in office, industrial and retail assets in Houston, Dallas and Austin. He has 31 years of industry experience, most recently as executive managing director and leader of national asset services at Transwestern, where he oversaw more than 235M SF of assets.

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Camden’s Allison Dunavant was promoted to vice president of business initiatives. She has 15 years of experience in project and program management and was previously Camden’s director of learning and development with responsibility for overseeing training. 

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John Zivley joined NAI Partners as a vice president in its office tenant rep group. He was previously with Oxford Partners.

SALES

Hillcroft Partners purchased Stonecreek Plaza, a 64K SF mixed-use property on 3 acres at 10175 Veterans Memorial. Newcor Commercial Real Estate’s Jared Pinto represented the seller, Vijay Mishra. The buyer represented itself.

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NAI Partners purchased Point West Business Park, a 146K SF flex industrial park just south of the Westchase District. This is the company’s first acquisition in its Fund III and the 10th in its overall investment fund platform, bringing the company beyond $100M in transaction volume. Interra Capital Group was the seller in the off-market deal. NAI Partners’ Andrew Pappas and Adam Hawkins negotiated alongside Hunington’s Todd Carlson and Porter Powers Attorneys’ Brad Porter. NAI’s Jennifer Gourlay and Amy Ivy will manage the property, and NAI’s Lesley Rice and Andy Parrish will lease it.

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Diaz Houston Land Co. purchased 1 acre at the intersection of Grand Parkway and Interstate 10 in Katy. NewQuest Properties' Andrew Alvis represented the buyer, and CBRE's Jazz Hamilton represented the seller, Grand Parkway/I10 Associates L.P.

LEASES

Kanau Sushi is opening in Caydon’s Drewery Place, a multifamily project in the first phase of the mixed-use Laneways development. Its name means “come true” in Japanese, and it will be the first self-owned restaurant concept for chef Mike Lim, who is partnering with Vinh Nguyen, Harry Nguyen and Tony Le. Le said the team had been eyeing Midtown for a restaurant for a while but was waiting for the right opportunity. Kanau Sushi will open in early 2020 as part of Drewery Place’s 13K SF of retail.

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Brahmin is opening a 1K SF boutique in CityCentre. This will be the seventh brick-and-mortar location for the brand but the first in the Houston area. The store was designed by LGA Architectural Partners and will serve as a pilot boutique to test new concepts, including events, before being unrolled across Brahmin’s portfolio.

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Cognizant Technology Solutions U.S. Corp. leased 23K SF at Towers at Westchase II, 10350 Richmond Ave. Savills’ Jennifer Jordan represented the tenant, and Stream’s Brad Fricks and Ryan Barbles represented the landlord, Franklin Street Properties. 

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Ulta Beauty leased 10K SF in 336 Marketplace, at the intersection of Interstate 45 N and South Loop 336 in Conroe. NewQuest Properties’ Shireen Owlia represented the tenant. Fidelis Realty Partners’ Carson Wilson IV represented the landlord in-house.

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Sam Moon Group announced 10 new tenants opening in its 175K SF Metropark Square development by spring 2020: 

• Martinis & Manicures, a nail salon that offers cocktails made by bartenders in suspenders and bow ties. It will open in November.

• The Wonderland Suite, which offers salon suites and booth rentals to salon and spa industry professionals. It will open in November.

• Top Sushi, opening in November.

• Dave & Buster's is expected to open in December.

• Bubble Egg, which serves bubble egg waffles, a Hong Kong street food specialty. It will open in December.

• Black Bear Diner, opening in January.

• Sharetea, a bubble tea franchise from Taiwan that is opening in January.

• Aesthetic Smiles Dentistry, opening in January.

• Jordan’s Sweet Shoppe, opening in February.

• BurgerIM, opening in February.

A 1,000-car garage will open in November and a Hyatt House hotel will open in November 2020. Retail leasing is managed by NewQuest Properties.

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Jinya Ramen Bar opened its seventh Houston-area location in Heights Waterworks, 449 West 19th St.

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Willowbrook Pavilion, a 155K SF retail property at Tomball Parkway and Millview Road, has reached 100% occupancy. Art Class & Wine Glass is the latest; the 1,337 SF storefront is slated to open by the end of 2019. NewQuest Properties’ Kevin Sims is leasing the center. Greenway Properties’ Gregg Lawrence represented the tenant. Two pad sites remain available.

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Mendocino Farms leased 2,849 SF on the ground floor of Two Allen Center in Downtown. The fast-casual sandwich and salad restaurant will open in late summer 2020, its fifth Houston location. RUE RE’s Jeremy Zidell and The Retail Connection’s Zach Hoffer represented the tenant. Transwestern’s Crystal Allen and Nick Hernandez represented the landlord, Brookfield Properties. Two and Three Allen Center are undergoing renovations, including a new two-story lobby in Two Allen Center and updated retail bays. Construction is underway and expected to wrap up late next year.

FINANCING

Ready Capital’s National Bridge Originations closed $270M worth of acquisition, mixed-use acquisition, renovation, refinance, redevelopment, stabilization and lease-up loans across eight states. One of the deals was in Houston — a loan financing the acquisition, renovation and stabilization of a 248-unit Class-C multifamily property. The nonrecourse, floating rate loan has a 36-month term and two extension options plus flexible prepayment, and is inclusive of a facility to provide future funding for capital expenditures.

CORRECTION, SEPT. 24, 1:05 P.M. CT: An earlier version of this story had the incorrect delivery date for the Hyatt in Metropark Square. It has been updated.