Alturas 2019 Year in Review
Written by Brent Carnduff | January 6, 2020
While sales volume was slightly lower than 2018, nationally 2019 was another strong year for the commercial real estate industry. Lower interest rates helped stimulate buyers, multi-family and industrial remained the most sought-after property types, big box stores closed their doors with a push towards a more experiential visit to the mall, and the service sector surpassed general retail in size for the first time.
The Alturas Real Estate Fund was impacted by many of the same forces, but not always in the same way. Lower interest rates certainly helped facilitate some core-plus acquisitions that may not have been possible otherwise. However in keeping with our contrarian nature, while most of the world was chasing multi-family and industrial deals, we continued to look for the best value, which in 2019 often ended up meaning office or retail properties.
Overall, we added seven properties and 298,648 SF of office and retail space across our geographic footprint, with additions in Boise, Pocatello, Colorado Springs, Idaho Falls, Mountain Home, and Salt Lake City. In addition, we sold two properties: 595 Washington, an industrial building in Twin Falls, and a Dutch Bros in Caldwell, Idaho - another successful full-cycle development project.
Recap of 2019 Transactions:
January: Sold Dutch Bros - Caldwell, ID
This is a full-cycle deal. Alturas purchased the land, built a new Dutch Bros coffee drive through, then sold the completed property.
March: Purchased Shops at Decker Lake - Salt Lake City, UT
The Shops at Decker Lake is located at 2200 West 3500 South in West Valley City, Utah, a growing suburb of Salt Lake City. The property is situated just off I-215, near the Maverik Center - a 12,000 seat multi-purpose arena which is home to the Utah Grizzlies hockey team, and a major venue in the region for numerous concerts and live touring productions.
The retail center consists of two parcels of land with two multi-tenant buildings and four stand-alone pad buildings totaling 52,250 square feet.
April: Purchased 4200 Hawthorne - Pocatello, ID
The LEED Certified Silver building, constructed in 2011, is well located just off I-86 at 4200 Hawthorne Road in Chubbuck, Idaho, a growing part of the fastest growing state in the country.
The building is fully occupied by Allstate Insurance Company and functions as a state of the art customer information center. Allstate considered several locations across the United States before choosing the Pocatello-Chubbuck area back in 2011. The company specifically chose the area because of its stable employee base, attractive cost of living and strong community.
April: Purchased 7733 Emerald - Boise, ID
The property, built in 1988 and renovated in 2006, is fully occupied by a single tenant - Dermatology Clinic of Idaho - and is located at 7733 W. Emerald Street in Boise, near the Boise Towne Square Mall.
June: Sold 595 Washington - Twin Falls, ID
Purchased in December of 2016 and fully occupied by St. Lukes, the Fund sold the property in June.
July: Purchased The Presidio - Colorado Springs, CO
This modern, four-story glass office building, located at 1155 Kelly Johnson Boulevard, is one of Colorado Springs’ most recognizable buildings.
August: Purchased 2206 Whitley - Boise, ID
The building - formerly a furniture store - will undergo extensive remodeling and will be converted to a 16,000 SF call center for tenant who will take occupancy in February 2019.
August: Purchased Sandcreek Plaza - Idaho Falls, ID
The 35,903 SF retail center is 100% occupied and is located at 939 S. 25th East, Ammon, Idaho, part of the Idaho Falls MSA, and one of Idaho’s fastest growing cities.
November: Purchased Idaho Natural & Organic Food (INAOF) - Mountain Home, ID
INAOF is 30,187 SF office and warehouse building that operates as a natural and organic food processing plant. It is located in Mountain Home, Idaho, a town about 45 miles east of Boise.
Barring any unforeseen incident impacting the United States or global economies, we expect 2020 to be very much like 2019. Industrial properties will remain hot. The housing shortage will continue to drive the multifamily sector. Interest rates may increase but we are confident that there will still be deals to be found for those with patience and good partners.