Some areas of the country have a steeper hill to climb to homeownership and some are more forgiving. As an interesting exercise, just how much salary do you need to earn in order to afford the principal, interest, taxes and insurance payments on a median-priced home in three metro areas? According to HSH.com, Houston requires the lowest salary, followed by Dallas and then Denver, of the areas covered by its survey and the Middle Market Digest geography. With lower rates and absolutely no change in Houston home prices, the required salary improved by more than $700 during the third quarter. If homebuyers in the Houston metro put 10% down instead of 20%, the required salary increases from $51,560 to $58,860. If homebuyers in the Dallas metro put 10% down instead of 20%, the required salary increases from $53,824 to $61,581.With home prices down nearly 2% and mortgage rates down 0.12% for the quarter, the required salary fell by more than $2,000 in the Denver metro. If homebuyers in this metro put 10% down instead of 20%, the required salary increases from $70,741 to $83,776, says HSH.com—Lisa Brown

BY THE NUMBERS

SANTA FE, NM—Current Santa Fe market trends data indicates no change in the median asking price per square foot for retail properties compared to the prior three months, with an increase of 15.7% compared to last year's prices. Countywide asking prices for retail properties are similar to the current median asking price at $222 per square foot, according to LoopNet.

LITTLE ROCK, AR—The average asking rental rate per square foot per year for retail properties as of midyear was $15.54. This represents an increase of 0.4% compared to the prior three months, with an increase of 6.6% year-over-year. Countywide average rental rates in Little Rock are 0.6% lower at $13.88 per square foot per year for retail properties currently for lease, according to LoopNet.

NEWS AND NOTABLES

LONGMONT, CO—Danaria Farris McCoy has been named division operations director in the NewMark Merrill Mountain States Longmont office. In her new role, McCoy will be responsible for overseeing the property management of the firm's 2 million-square-foot portfolio of shopping centers throughout the Rocky Mountain region and will provide support to the property management teams for each of the individual assets.

HOUSTON—Hunt Mortgage Group, a firm that finances commercial real estate throughout the United States, has opened an office here and has hired Tony Talamas as vice president to lead the local effort. Talamas will focus on originating agency debt, primarily small balance loans under the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae small balance loan programs for clients in the South Central United States. Talamas reports to Charlie Cole, senior vice president at Hunt Mortgage Group.

DEAL TRACKER

EL PASO, TX—Pioneer Realty Capital closed a $4.75 million loan to refinance the Sierra Court Retail Center. The loan was 65% loan-to-value with flexible pre-payment options. The sponsor increased net annual cash flows by reducing the interest rate from 6.19% to 3.9%. The sponsor also avoided the typical impounds usually imposed by CMBS lenders.

DENVER—Cushman & Wakefield has represented Northwest Pipe Company in the sale of a 40.03 acre industrial infill site in the Central Denver market to buyer, Prologis. Located at 6030 Washington St., the acquisition places Prologis in a favorable position to adequately service the strong demand for class-A industrial product in the inventory-constrained Central Denver submarket. In addition to the seller representation, Matt Trone, Steve Hager and Sam Slaton, the industrial team at Cushman & Wakefield, will represent Prologis in marketing the new development to future tenants.

BUILDING BLOCKS

SANDY CITY, UT—Coldwell Banker Commercial (CBC Advisors) finalized the largest office build-to-suit transaction in Utah history for Mountain America Credit Union. Totaling 327,000 square feet, the landmark 11-story headquarters broke ground today, prominently located on Interstate 15 at 9800 South located in the heart of the Salt Lake suburban market. Designed by WRNS Studio and developed by Gardner Company, the building will be owned by Mountain America Credit Union. Brandon Fugal and Jordan Wall of CBC Advisors exclusively represent the developer.

AURORA, CO—Fueled by a continuation of favorable local and national market conditions, as well as a pre-lease of a 452,400-square-foot building to Amazon earlier this year, Majestic Realty Co. plans to build what will be the largest single-phase speculative industrial development in Colorado's history, according to industry experts. The developer will break ground at its Majestic Commercenter on three speculative industrial warehouse and distribution buildings totaling 834,580 square feet. Completion of the three properties is anticipated for summer 2017 and will bring the Majestic Commercenter portfolio to nearly 4.2 million square feet with strong occupancy and tenant retention across its 17 buildings.

OKLAHOMA CITY—As the first speculative office building in Oklahoma City in 30 years, BOK Park Plaza will provide premium class-A office space for the city's vital business sector. Located at the southeastern edge of the block at the intersection of Hudson and Sheridan, the tower will comprise 27 floors including 25 floors of class-A office and retail, dining and fitness facilities. Its height and crown enhance the tower's proportions, reinforce its vertical character and create a distinct lighting opportunity. Typical office floors will have a clear ceiling height of 10 feet.

OPELOUSAS, LA—The local nonprofit organization Opelousas Lighthouse Mission provides transitional housing and rehabilitation services to homeless men, many of whom struggle with addiction. Thanks in part to a $500,000 Affordable Housing Program grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas and St. Landry Homestead Federal Savings Bank, Opelousas Lighthouse Mission will construct a new 64-bed transitional housing facility for homeless men. Construction will begin in February 2017 and is estimated to be completed in December 2017.

BY THE NUMBERS

NEWS AND NOTABLES

DEAL TRACKER

BUILDING BLOCKS

Instant Insights /

Middle Market Digest: This Week in the South and Mountain Regions

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