Double Eagle Development

The Saint Grand opens to residents in Streeterville Mavrek Development | Luxury Living | Double Eagle Development | GW Property Group LLC | NORR | Lendlease

Happy to share the progress of our Multifamily projects in Saint Louis and Chicago. This is the result of a great team, Double Eagle (BBT, Mena&Ovalle, Sanvest), Mavrek and Falcom Asset Managment. We are planning to open 3-4Q of this year. And we go for more!!!

We’re in the point of the cycle where the tortoise is beating the hare. I’m referring to the Midwest region of the country – which is having its moment against the trendier coastal markets and Sun Belt markets in 2023-24. It’s gotten to the point that when I talk or write about multifamily these days, I often feel the need to add the disclaimer: “other than the Midwest.” Because while most of the country will wrestle with multi-decade highs in apartment supply (yes, even you, West Coast), the Midwest is only seeing a blip. And as a result, nearly all of the Midwest’s largest 20 markets are outperforming the U.S. averages for rent growth and occupancy. Furthermore: The Midwest now claims 8 of the top 12 spots for year-over-year rent growth among top 50-sized U.S. markets. It's the ballad of the tortoise. The Midwest will rarely (if ever) outperform in a strong market. But in a period of volatility, there’s value in the “steady eddy.” In particular, top Midwest markets like Columbus, Indianapolis and Kansas City are approaching/reaching “institutional market” status, alongside parts of Chicago. Smaller markets like Grand Rapids, Madison, Des Moines and Sioux Falls are also rapidly gaining in stature. And the trends of 2023-24 make a strong argument for the inclusion of some Midwest in any national multifamily portfolio for the purposes of diversification. Here’s how the Midwest stacks up against the rest of the country right now: Apartment occupancy: 50 bps ABOVE the U.S. average. YoY rent growth: 280 bps ABOVE the U.S. average. Resident retention: 240 bps ABOVE the U.S. average. Apartment construction: 220 bps BELOW the U.S. average. Total apartment construction amounts to just 2.8% inventory expansion in the Midwest, the lowest of all regions. The national average is 5.0%, the highest since the 1980s. Apartment investors closely follow top-line economic stats like employment growth. By that measure, the Midwest remains a laggard. But remember: It’s all about supply relative to demand. Other regions may have more net new demand, but they also have a lot more supply. And by that measure, the Midwest is tough to beat right now. The institutional knock on the Midwest is that it’s a) difficult to scale and b) less liquid. But I suspect more and more will find a way to overcome scalability, while the liquidity fears are likely overstated. It wasn’t that long ago when some institutions worried about the Sun Belt liquidity, too.) Long term, the Midwest is unlikely to remain an outperformer. BUT … it may be the safest bet for a low-beta multifamily investment. And that has value, too. #multifamily #apartments #midwest