Retail and real estate column: Buyer demand creates sizzling housing market

 

The median sales price for a home in northeast Indiana was up 8.9 percent in May from the same month a year earlier, according to a new report from the Upstate Alliance of Realtors Multiple Listing Service.

Inventory levels shrank 17.8 percent and the percentage of original sales price received by sellers was up 1.2 percent, to 97.9 percent. New listings increased 10 percent.

“The intensity of buyer demand is unlike anything we’ve seen in recent history, said Kim Ward, 2018 UPSTAR MLS president. “Now that we’re in the spring selling season, I’m glad to see that new listings have increased to help accommodate the demand and competition for desirable homes.”

For the year to date through May, the median sales price is up 6.2 percent and inventories are down 8.4 percent for the same period in 2017.

UPSTAR’s primary coverage area includes the counties of Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, Noble, Wells and Whitley.

SVN Parke Group

Brandon Downey represented both the lessee, Tonn and Blank Construction LLC, and the lessor, Leo #1 LLC, in the lease of 4,200 square feet of industrial space at 6016 Highview Drive, Units 4 & 5.

Downey represented both the lessee, Mike Lee, and the lessor, Rose Ann Turner and Rose Ann Turner Trustees, in the lease of 4,500 square feet of industrial space at 5015 Speedway Drive, Unit D.

Downey represented the lessor, Barry Knoll LLC, and the lessees in the following lease transactions: First Community Care LLC in the renewal of a lease of 4,800 square feet of industrial space at 3404 Metro Drive, Suites B & D; David Wall in the new lease of 5,400 square feet of industrial space at 6015 Highview Drive, Unit A; and Tech Solutions Corp. in the new lease of 1,800 square feet of industrial space located at 6015 Highview Drive, Unit C.

Diana Parent represented the seller, Texas Roadhouse Holdings LLC, and Jim Lohman represented the buyer, RU Twins LLC, in the sale of the property at 620 W. Washington Center Road.

Bill Beard represented both the seller, Anne Pape, and the buyer, Andrew Stores, in the sale of 1,744 square feet of office space at 3450 Stellhorn Drive.

Bradley Co.

Tyler Binkley represented the tenant, Georgetown Professional Center LLC, and the tenant, JB’s Barber Shop, in the lease of retail space in Georgetown North, 6424 Georgetown North Blvd.

Kienan O’Rourke represented the tenant, GAI Consultants, in the lease of 6,239 square feet of office space at 9921 Dupont Circle Drive West.

CBRE/Sturges

John Caffray represented the seller, Beedy Properties LLC, in the sale of a 20,748 square-foot industrial building at 2403 Shoaff Road, Huntertown.

Caffray represented the lessee, Forefront Management LLC, in the lease of 1,549 square feet of office space at 2250 North Pointe Drive, Warsaw.

Neal Bowman and Rebecca Worrell represented the tenant, Dish Network Services LLC, in the renewal of a lease of 9,328 square feet of space at 3230 Rosetta Place, South Bend.

Bowman and Worrell represented the landlord, Chapel Ridge LLC,and also represented the tenant, AZFIT LLC, doing business as 9Round, in the lease of 1,280 square feet of space at 10454 Maysville Road. This is 9Round’s third Fort Wayne location.

Retail sales top forecast

May retail sales increased 0.7 percent seasonally adjusted over April and 5.6 percent unadjusted year-over-year as a growing economy prompted consumers to continue to spend, the National Retail Federation reported.

The numbers exclude automobiles, gasoline stations and restaurants.

“The economy is looking strong and households have a solid financial foundation on which to base their spending,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said in a June 14 release. “We have seen ongoing momentum over the last several months and believe sales growth should remain healthy and consistent with our 2018 outlook. Nonetheless, inflation and rising oil prices are complicating the picture. And new tariffs or a trade war would certainly be negatives that would increase prices and reduce both consumer purchasing power and consumer confidence.”

The three-month moving average was up 4.6 percent over the same period a year ago, topping NRF’s forecast that 2018 retail sales would grow between 3.8 percent and 4.4 percent over 2017.

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