These are challenging times for the commercial real estate industry. That doesn’t mean, though, that deals aren’t getting done and developments aren’t rising. For proof, just look at the Kansas City Apartment Summit held Sept. 28 at the Plexpod Westport in Kansas City, Missouri.
A full house of commercial real estate professionals gathered at the Plexpod Westport to hear the top brokers, developers and government officials in the Kansas City market speak about the state of the local apartment sector. And the consensus? Yes, fewer apartment sales are happening today because of higher interest rates. Developers face high costs for construction materials. But despite these hurdles, the Kansas City multifamily sector remains a resilient one.
And while no one can predict the future, panelists at this year’s summit mostly agreed that next year will be an even stronger one for the local multifamily market. After all, the supply of housing here hasn’t kept pace with the demand for it. That bodes well for Kansas City’s multifamily market.
The event kicked off with the Kansas City Apartment Market Update panel. Speaking on this panel were Charlie Lowe, Crossroads Real Estate Group; Audrey Navarro, Clemons Real Estate; Bob Mayer, MR Capital Advisors; Michael Spero, Berkadia; and Brett Meinzer, MMG Real Estate Advisors. Panelists said that Kansas City’s apartment sector does face headwinds, mostly from higher interest rates. They also said, though, that demand for multifamily space remains high among renters.
Participating in the second panel of the day, the Capital Markets Panel, were Chip Walsh, Mercier Street; Morgan Schulte, First National Bank of Omaha; Rob Meehan, Greystone; John Schorgl, Berkadia; Frank Sciara, Walker & Dunlop; and Carmine DiFulvio, Security 1st Exchange.
The third panel, Developing, Designing, Managing & Building a Successful Apartment Project, closed out the summit on a positive note, as speakers focused on the attributes that set successful multifamily projects apart from those that struggle to attract renters. Speaking on this panel were Brenner Holland, Hunt Midwest; Jason Osborne, Rosemann & Associates; John McGurk, Milhaus; Chip Walsh, Mercier Street; Joe Kelley, Kadean Construction; Caleb Buland, Exact Partners.
