GRBJ: Signals point to surge in apartment construction

616 Lofts at 820 Monroe Ave. NW in Grand Rapids.(Photo: Facebook.com/616Lofts)

GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. - Despite a relative lull in multifamily residential housing construction at the beginning of 2017, indications point to another surge.

Currently in the city of Grand Rapids, there are 19 projects under construction and more than 2,000 apartment units, most of which fall into the market-rate category. Meanwhile, there are 15 proposed or approved projects in the city with nearly 15,000 units, many of which qualify as affordable housing developments.

Several projects seemed to stall earlier this year, and at least one project, the Warner Building, switched from a residential component to hotel prior to its groundbreaking in June. A major signal residential might still have forward momentum is the groundbreaking of 601 Bond by the New York-based development group Time Equities Inc. The 16-story, 140-unit mixed-use building in the North Monroe neighborhood had gone dark for months before abruptly beginning site work in July.

The increase in construction is based on multiple factors, said Scott Nurski, NAI of West Michigan multifamily investment advisor.

Starting with more than a decade of little multifamily construction combined with mild population growth and employment growth, as well as more expected household growth as young adults move out of parental households and roommate situations, all contribute to the pent-up demand, Nurski said.

“These factors have led to a significant increase in multifamily construction across West Michigan,” he said.

With the spurt of growth, such as Arena Place and multiple 616 Development and CWD Real Estate Development projects, occupancy rates still are strong, Nurski said.

“We expect the added unit supply will help alleviate the relative shortage of rental availability but will start to impact occupancy levels a bit in the next 12 to 24 months,” he said, adding only a few submarkets will feel a market saturation.

To read the entire story, pick up a copy of the Grand Rapids Business Journal or visit their website.

© 2017 Grand Rapids Business Journal

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Albany Police respond to shooting at Sunchase Apartments

Image
Police said one person was hurt in a shooting in Albany Sunday night . (Source: WALB) ALBANY, GA (WALB) - Police said one person was hurt in a shooting in Albany Sunday night . According to Albany Police, the shooting happened in the parking lot of Sunchase Apartments on Hobson Street. Dispatch said the call came in at 9:42 p.m. Sunday. Police said a black man, 25, was shot in the upper body. Sunday night, police said they are searching for two black males believed to be driving a white Buick LaSaber . One of them was reportedly wearing a white shirt and the other was wearing a black shirt. Police said this is preliminary information and could change as the investigation moves forward . Copyright 2017 WALB. All rights reserved.  Report an error  |  Submit a tip to WALB News 10
Read more

UPDATE: Woodcrest apartment fire claims second life - News - Dover Post

A Felton woman has become the second victim of a deadly fire that swept the Woodcrest Arms apartment complex June 6 . Jeff Brown, News Editor A second victim of the June 6 fire at Woodcrest Arms apartment complex has died. Christina Lynn Taylor , 33, of Cedar Grove Church Road , Felton, died the afternoon of June 7 while at Crozier Chester Burn Center , Chester, Pa., said Dover Police Capt . Tim Stump. Taylor and her boyfriend had been at the apartments to help a relative move, Stump said. The boyfriend, whose name was not released, was still at the burn center, where he had been taken with life-threatening injuries after the fire. Stump also identified the first victim of the blaze as Jacqueline Wuest, 61. Wuest’s body was found in her third- floor apartment during an initial sweep of the building. The city of Dover fire marshal is continuing his investigation into the cause of the fire, Stump said. -------------- An early morning fire ripped through a building in Woodcrest Arm
Read more

Denver Home Sales Becoming Buyer's Market

Image
Denver's housing market has been red hot for the past few years, with buyers of more modest means often finding themselves priced out of properties thanks to bidding wars that routinely generate over-list offers. But as indicated by the presence of a "Price Reduced" sign on a home in a sought-after part of Centennial, as seen in the photo above, this situation may finally be about to change. Janene Russeau of Madison & Company, who's handling the South Madison Way and East Phillips Avenue house — it was originally priced at $639,000, but is currently going for $599,000 — feels that "it's turning a little bit more into a buyer's market, as opposed to a seller's market." If so, that's a big change. As recently as April, real estate agents such as Karen Mistrot, the woman behind Karen & Company Realty, were reacting to the incredible demand for new houses by way of "Coming Soon" signage for homes about to be put on the marke
Read more