Investment Acquisition: Austin Industrial Park

9709 Brown Lane (76,000 SF) in Austin, TX Closed March 2019

Austin, TX – Nordic Realty Partners purchased the 76,000 square foot “last mile” infill industrial park located at 9709 Brown Lane. The property traded at an undisclosed price. Byram Properties was the seller, which has owned the property since 1984.

Located on Brown Lane in the Cameron Industrial Park in central east Austin, 9709 Brown Lane compromises three large warehouse buildings spread over four acres.  Nordic plans to make significant capital improvements and bring the property up to specifications seen in other urban infill parks, tailoring the spaces for a new generation of tenants including creative makers and entrepreneurs, local service businesses, and high-volume users who need to be within 20 minutes of central Austin. Nordic’s objective is to offer affordable space to growing businesses seeking high ceiling heights and secure storage space with truck and dock access.

Nordic principal Adam Cibik on the acquisition: “Last mile infill industrial is one of our highest conviction investment sectors for Austin. The yields are higher than apartment buildings, and we are finding tenant demand to be very deep for flexible spaces that appeal to small businesses and creative users. After our improvements, users can be anyone from a carpet distributor to a craft brewery. We have a pipeline of future acquisitions that will enable long-term owners to unlock the true value of their properties, and are looking for more warehouse deals in and around Austin.”

About Nordic Realty Partners – Nordic Realty Partners, LLC is a privately-held real estate development, investment management, and brokerage firm with offices in Los Angeles, Austin and Chicago. Mr. Cibik has been a resident of Austin since 2013 and opened the Nordic Austin office in 2015. Nordic has since acquired over 125,000 square feet of high-value creative warehouse space in central Austin. Nordic investors include several prominent family offices and wealth management groups across the US.

Adam Cibik joins Nordic Realty Partners as Managing Director

Austin, TX – Nordic Realty Partners LLC (“Nordic”) is pleased to announce the appointment of Adam Cibik to Managing Director to be based out of Austin, Texas effective September 1st, 2018.

In this newly-created role, Mr. Cibik will manage acquisitions, asset management and capital raising for new value-add real estate investments with a geographic focus on the central Austin, TX market and a sector focus on multi-tenant light industrial and workforce housing (multifamily) assets.  He aims to use his experiences working for best-in-class LPs to create a better GP model through technology-based market/asset selection, lower fee loads and higher partnership transparency.

Mr. Cibik brings over fourteen years of institutional real estate investment management experience to Nordic.  He was most recently at the Employees Retirement System of Texas (“ERS Texas”) where he served as Portfolio Manager – Real Estate Investments overseeing comingled fund and direct co-investments for the $27 billion pension fund’s real estate allocation.  Prior to ERS Texas, Adam spent five years with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (“CPPIB”) working in Toronto and London on international real estate acquisitions.  Earlier in his career, he held positions at CBRE and Builders Bank. 

Mr. Cibik holds a MBA and BBA in real estate and urban land economics from the University of Wisconsin – Madison and sits on the Advisory Board for the Graaskamp Center for Real Estate.

About Nordic Realty Partners – Nordic Realty Partners LLC is an emerging real estate private equity, investment management and brokerage firm that runs private partnerships and separate accounts for institutional and high net worth clients.  The firm runs a tech-enabled sponsor/operator model though value-add and opportunistic real estate partnerships in central Austin, Chicago and southeastern Wisconsin.  Nordic has offices in Los Angeles, Austin and Chicago.  For more information, please visit www.nordicrealtypartners.com.

Contact:                                                                                                                         

Nordic Realty Partners, LLC

773.234.8077

www.nordicrealtypartners.com

info@nordicrealtypartners.com

Investment Acquisition: Dungan Warehouses and Storage

Dungan Warehouses & Storage (19,453 SF) in Austin, TX Closed June 15, 2017

Nordic is pleased to announce the acquisition of Dungan Self-Storage & Warehouses - 1605 Dungan Lane, on June 15. Located 10 minutes from Downtown Austin, in a transitioning neighborhood in the path of growth, Dungan Warehouses is a 19,453 SF warehouse and self-storage property, consisting of 38 units.

The property functions as both a warehouse/business incubator as well as self-storage, with the larger units geared toward small business owners, so there are a wide variety of users driving demand.  The Nordic business plan includes implementing institutional asset management best practices and completing minor capital and cosmetic projects to improve the curb appeal and market positioning of the property.   We are already +4% above underwriting for rents and have a wait list for new tenants.

Nordic has several additional current projects in the acquisition pipeline. Inquire with us for more details, and sign up for our mailing list to learn more about these and similar commercial real estate investment opportunities.

"Keep Austin Weird"

Capital value growth rates similar to Toronto, Vancouver and some 2nd tier cities in China.

Austin has exploded in the past seven years, driven by a potent combination of high population growth and low new development volume.  The tech sector has boomed, attracting new high and low-income earners (about 150 net migration per day, and counting...), which has triggered high demand for real estate.  On the flip side, new real estate development has been relatively restricted due to low-density zoning, low height restrictions and high environmental boundaries (not withstanding the above photo!).

With the warm Texas weather and 0% tax rate, people are still coming and this shows no signs of slowing down.  Since 2012, single family home values have increased +100-140% in some neighborhoods, and commercial properties have recorded similar gains.  Simply put, Austin is one of the best real estate markets in the country for income and capital value growth if you can find the right property.

The bad news is good real estate deals are hard to find.  Most properties are bid up substantially, with income barely covering a loan payment (if at all!).  And since occupancy has been so high, landlords have deferred maintenance, and thus in most cases assets need work.  Pricing can get out of hand; competition for properties is extremely high, and even the smaller assets in high demand locations sell for 4-4.5% yields.  Most accretive deals are off market and incredibly difficult to find.

But we are home to the best restaurants in Texas, the best BBQ (maybe), the best music scene, and a population of some of the most open minded and tech-savvy citizens in the nation.  All at the doorstep of Hill Country.  We've added 8,600 hotel rooms in the past several years - plenty of room for SXSW and the ALC Music Festival.  Come visit!

• Fun Austin Facts - The city's slogan is "Keep Austin Weird"...it is the fastest-growing, youngest, safest big city in the U.S (average age is 28) and has one of the the highest percentage of millennials of any US city....Austin has the largest urban bat population on the continent!?

• Residential hotbed - Apartment rents have grown 5-8% per year since 2012 and while moderating, rent growth is expected to remain elevated above the US average and Austin remains 96% occupied. We are a top 15 exposure for multi-family REITs. There is a chronic lack of affordable housing anywhere near the CBD and transit routes.

• "Silicon Hills" - Tech jobs are creating booming office demand. In 2016 Austin had the highest office net absorption in the country as a % of inventory, 1.6% vs. 0.2% national average, according to JLL. Whole Foods is headquartered here, and Amazon, Facebook, Google and AthenaHealth have all leased large blocks of space in the past 24 months.

• The Domain - One of the largest mixed-use developments in the country, operated by Simon and Endeavor Real Estate, continues to grow at a rapid pace. Class A office rents here are now what they were downtown three years ago (low $30s/SF). Other prominent redevelopments are the Seaholm Power Plant, Dell Medical Center and Mueller Airport, driving growth and attracting more national interest.

• Fundamentals - Over 150 people move to Austin per day on a net basis, driven by good jobs, warm weather, and corporate relocations. Analysts expect 8-10k household formations per year for the next several years. Not bad for a city the size of Madison!

We will be posting the best tidbits and charts in the months ahead.  Please bookmark or sign up for our mailing list so you are updated with the latest posts.

Welcome to our home markets!

Commercial real estate investments in Chicago, Austin and Los Angeles.

We invest where we live.  Nordic Realty Partners is a boutique, independently owned small cap real estate private equity firm that focuses on value-add properties where we can control risk and actively manage the asset.  Our home markets are among the hottest cities in the country - Chicago, Austin and LA.  The Nordic principals live in these cities for a reason - all are growing, innovating and constantly re-inventing.  We do not invest in bubbles or trends - but rather neighborhoods, where businesses, populations, and families are growing and thriving.

We offer accredited investors limited partnership opportunities where you are a true partner - with full and transparent access to underwriting, reporting and most importantly, us.  Our partnership structures are easy to understand, fees are low, and our assets strategies are straight-forward - with target annual cash yields 8-10% (distributed) and annual total returns in the 12-16% range, after fees and taxes.  The Nordic principals have on average 18 years of commercial real estate investment experience from industry leading firms and banks, and we are bringing the best of what we have learned to individual investors and family offices.  

Please join us in successfully investing in our neighborhoods and follow this blog for topical commercial real estate investment and development info and tips, market trends, and insights into where we invest and why.