Page 18 - NBIZ August 2021

Houston Industrial

MARKET HIGHLIGHTS

By Zack Taylor and Lisa Bridges
ouston’s Industrial market continues to gain The strong leasing activity in Q2 mirrors a more optimis-
momentum as leasing velocity reaches almost 12 tic outlook on the economy and overall recovery from the
Hmillion square feet, up 30% from Q1 2021. Notable COVID crisis. Governor Abbot issued an Executive Order in
leases include Wolseley’s lease of 750K SF at Empire March removing all COVID-related operating limits on busi-
West, Living Spaces’ lease of 685K SF at Air 59 Logistics nesses. In addition, President Biden issued a third economic
Center, Webstaurant’s lease of 645K SF at Cedar Port stimulus package in March that has pumped more money
Logistics, Goodman’s lease of 494K SF at Sam Houston into the economy. Retail spending now has surpassed pre-
Distribution Center and FedEx’s lease of 535K SF at Park COVID levels. E-commerce, automobile sales, and building
505. With consumer confidence approaching pre-pandem- materials have been the biggest beneficiaries of consumer
ic levels, we expect to see strong leasing activity for the spending—all five of the largest leases signed in Q2 fall into
near term. one of these three categories.

18 NBIZ ■ August 2021