Younger Partners Investments Acquires Grocery-Anchored Shopping Center

Tom Thumb at Heath Town Center

Younger Partners Investments (YPI) completed its first retail acquisition: Heath Town Center, a 77,669-square-foot grocery-anchored retail center at FM 549 and Laurence Drive in Heath. YPI is Younger Partners’ newest platform designed to acquire retail properties. YPI was launched in July 2020 to target retail properties from lifestyle to neighborhood centers throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

The newly built shopping center is anchored by a top-performing Tom Thumb grocery store alongside its 12-pump fuel station and in-store Starbucks. The property’s occupancy is 98 percent with one small vacancy of 1,827 rentable square feet. Younger Partners will handle the property management and leasing of the property.

Younger Partners’ Micah Ashford, Moody Younger and Kathy Permenter represented YPI in the acquisition. JLL’s Adam Howells represented the seller, Malouf Interests, Inc. Financing arranged by Adam Mengacci of Hamilton Realty Finance. Terms of the deal were undisclosed.

“This is a great property to launch our new platform,” says Micah Ashford, who leads YPI’s efforts. “This high-performing Tom Thumb provides consistent traffic patterns to the property and serves as an excellent anchor for the shop tenants, who benefit from maximum exposure. This location is incredible as the City of Heath has seen population growth of 40 percent over the last 10 years.”

Demand has increased at the intersection of FM 549 and Laurence Drive, which was recently expanded. The property is also located immediately adjacent to two heavy daytime traffic generators, Rockwall-Heath High School to the north and Amy Park Elementary School to the south, Ashford adds.

“We feel like retail is one of the most disrupted sectors of commercial real estate,” says Younger Partners Co-Founder and YPI Partner Moody Younger. “While we can relate to the tough times COVID-19 has created, we are confident in the resilience of Texas and we are excited to make this investment in the future of retail and our region. We are actively seeking our next acquisition now.”

Younger Partners Co-Founder and YPI Partner Kathy Permenter says the new division has been part of the partners’ long-term strategy. “With the market going through dramatic changes, this is a good time to do it. I started my career in retail, and it continues to interest me. I look forward to investing in this sector,” she says.

Moody Younger in D CEO: Life Lessons From The Farm

The Younger Partners co-founding partner says his father’s “off your ass and on your feet” advice is resonating more than ever.

BY MOODY YOUNGER PUBLISHED IN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE AUGUST 6, 2020 

Obviously, it has been a weird year thus far. I don’t think that I am alone in finding it very frustrating. It seems that as we begin to gain momentum, something happens to stop it. Overall, I have been pleased with our company’s performance throughout the uncertainty of the current market conditions. However, I have days when it takes an extra cup of coffee to get me going.

Growing up on a farm in the High Plains of Texas just below the Panhandle, we faced constant uncertainty from the dramatically unpredictable weather, insects, and the inherent randomness of farming. One year we lost a cotton crop due to defective seeds.

I worked on the farm with my dad since I was old enough to remember. There are a couple of things he used to tell my siblings (there are four of us) and me that have resonated with me quite often recently.

The first was, “It’s always something.” He used this phrase anytime any of us complained about unexpected changes or outcomes that we didn’t think were fair. There may be more ‘somethings’ this year, but there is always ‘something’ if you choose to focus on the negative. By saying, “It’s always something,” his message was for us to basically shut up and keep moving forward. Focus on what we could do to improve things and don’t waste time thinking or talking about the ‘something’ that is always there if you choose to make excuses. Excuses were never acceptable to him, and he used all kinds of other witty phrases to establish this position. “It’s always something” was the most passive of the bunch.

The other phrase that has been resonating with me is the one he used in the morning to get us up or if he ever saw us sitting around, not doing anything. It was “Off your ass and on your feet, out of the shade and in the heat!” I am not sure where that phrase originated. My dad’s father was in World War II and grew up during the Great Depression. I expect this was a phrase from that era. For Dad, it didn’t just mean that you were going to work, and it didn’t just mean that you were going to work hard; it meant that you were going to work hard and fast. We didn’t get to walk to get tools or anything on the farm, we ran!

Why are Dad’s phrases resonating so strongly with me now, and how does this relate to the real estate business in Dallas? As real estate brokers, we are salespeople. COVID-19, riots, elections, misrepresentation of facts; “It’s always something.” Staying home, not engaging, lack of in-person connections, missing social interactions that lead to collaboration, that lead to creativity, that lead to deals: “Off your ass, on your feet, out of the shade and in the heat!”

I realize that COVID-19 is very dangerous for people that have significant underlying conditions, and people with those conditions should take all the precautions they deem necessary. However, if you aren’t one of those people, and you plan to be successful in our industry, I strongly recommend that you get “off your ass and on your feet, out of the shade and in the heat!” Because in our industry, “It’s always something.”

As a company, we have had to decide whether to prepare for growth or move home into isolation mode. With the positive influence of our partners and Dad’s phrases bouncing around in our heads, Kathy and I chose growth. We are pursuing new ventures in retail acquisitions and corporate services, expanding our office space by 32 percent, and recruiting new brokers to our platform. Our region of the country is very resilient, and we are incredibly optimistic about its future.

My father passed away in 2002, but if he were here today, I can guarantee that viewing Dallas from the High Plains of Texas, one thing would be apparent to him. The winners next year—when all the pent-up demand emerges for our market—will not be the people hanging out at home complaining about the events of 2020. The winners will be those that are fully engaged in pursuing the tremendous opportunities that will soon emerge for us in North Texas.

Moody Younger is one of the co-founding partners of Younger Partners. To see it in D CEO, click here.

Younger Partners Adds Retail Investment Division

Younger Partners created a new platform to acquire retail properties: Younger Partners Investments. It will target retail properties from lifestyle to neighborhood centers in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Along with this new division comes the hire of Micah Ashford to lead the charge.

“We feel like retail is one of the most disrupted sectors of commercial real estate,” says Younger Partners Co-Founder Moody Younger. “While we can relate to the tough times COVID-19 has created for many, we are confident in the resilience of Texas and we are excited to make this investment in the future of retail and our region.  The opportunity to add talent like Micah made the decision to launch this new platform an easy one for us.”

Ashford is coming off a two-year hiatus from a 20-year career as a partner at Dunhill Partners, a leading commercial real estate firm in the Southwest that focuses on retail shopping centers.

Younger Partners Co-Founder Kathy Permenter says the new division has been part of the partners’ long-term strategy. “With the market going through dramatic changes as the result of the COVID-19 pandemic, this is a good time to do it. I started my career in retail, and it continues to interest me. I look forward to investing in this sector,” she says.

Younger says three key factors played a role in why retail was the logical choice for the investment line. First, it doesn’t conflict with Younger Partners’ existing service lines. Additionally, he believes opportunities will emerge in retail and value can be created.  Finally, Ashford’s availability to lead the team was the clincher.

You can reach Micah Ashford at micah.ashford@youngerpartners.com or 214-238-8016 (office) and 214-215-3871 (mobile.) For more information on her joining Younger Partners, see her new hire press release here.

YP’s Moody Younger: TREC FightNight Raised $1.4M

It has been almost a month since FightNight XXXI and ICYMI, more than $1.4 million was raised for the TREC Foundation and its good works. Kudos to Younger Partners Co-Founder Moody Younger for his efforts as the FightNight Chairman for the event’s 25th anniversary. Here is a look at some of the FightNight photos featuring Younger Partners.

Photos courtesy of TREC.

The Dallas Stars Foundation chose FightNight to announce its partnership with St. Philip’s School and Community Center.


Fight Night ’19 Knockout

TREC Fight Night 2019 was a knock-out evening. Younger Partners Co-Founder Moody Younger (and Fight Night chairman) sparred with the Dallas Stars’ Victor E. Green and hung out in the ring with Dallas Stars legend Marty Turco, as well as many DFW CRE greats. Here are just some of the event highlights.


Moody Younger Featured in TREC Member Spotlight

TREC featured Younger Partners Co-Founder Moody Younger in its Member Spotlight. Moody will serve as the Fight Night 19 Chairman.

FightNight is the real estate industry’s premier philanthropic event, with opportunities to reconnect with friends and colleagues in a fun Vegas-style environment right here in Dallas. We are blazing a new trail this year with our theme of “black ties and boots.” I expect it to be to be tons of fun. The event is also for a great cause and the amount of work put in by volunteers and the TREC staff to continuously improve the event and raise money for the TREC Foundation is truly remarkable.

Read the full spotlight here.

FightNight 19 will be April 25 at the Hilton Anatole and help celebrate TREC Foundation’s 25th anniversary with a night of professional boxing, exceptional cuisine, casino-style gaming and the opportunity to network with the top decision makers in the commercial real estate industry and political community. Since its inception in 1989, FightNight has become one of North Texas’ largest philanthropic events, raising more than $27 million to support the Foundation and its good works. This year’s proceeds benefit TREC Foundation and the Dallas Catalyst Project. Tickets and tables are available now at RECouncil.com.

An Evening of Winners: NTCAR 2018 Stemmons Service Award Event

Congrats to Younger Partners Co-Founder Kathy Permenter on her NTCAR Stemmons Service Award nomination. We are so incredibly proud of her achievements both professionally and within the community she serves. She was nominated along with Venture’s Mike Geisler, Fischer & Co’s Sharon Friedberg & Citadel Partners’ Scott Morse. Congratulations to the 2018 winner, Scott Morse. Here’s a wrap up of the Younger Partners team at the event at the Dallas Country Club.

Younger Partners Finishes Top 10 in DBJ’s 2018 Best Places to Work

The Younger Partners team is humbled to finish in the Top 10 of in the medium category of the Dallas Business Journal’s 2018 Best Places to Work. Thanks to our leadership & the entire team for making this a Best Place to Work. #dfwworks #bptw #teamwork #togetherwewin See the full rankings here.

The BPTW event was deemed “DFW’s biggest company picnic” at the Dr Pepper Ballpark Center in Frisco with colleagues and families invited to join in corn hole, giant Jenga, the hula hoop hustle, among other fun and games.

CoStar Article Features Younger Partners Research, Leadership

CoStar article by Candace Carlisle

New Office Buildings Delivering Low Vacancy Rates in Dallas-Fort Worth: The Areas With the Lowest Vacancies Also have the Newest Office Options

Developers putting new office buildings on the ground in Dallas-Fort Worth are also helping boost occupancy rates in key neighborhoods as tenants flock to the younger generation properties.

It’s no accident some of North Texas’ submarkets with the lowest vacancy rates, including Far North Dallas, Uptown, Richardson and Las Colinas, have all delivered buildings in this real estate cycle, said Steve Triolet, research director for Dallas-based Younger Partners. “Tenants really prefer new product over old product,” Triolet told Costar News. “If you look at the 1980s vintage of buildings from the heyday of construction in Dallas, most of those skyscrapers are 35 years old and, to stay competitive, they have to renovate.”

Those skyscrapers in downtown Dallas, including Trammell Crow Center, Bank of America Plaza, Fountain Place, Ross Tower and Chase Tower, have all recently undergone or are undergoing massive multimillion-dollar upgrades. The facelifts help those buildings compete with new buildings coming to the market, including PwC Tower and The Union.

That is exactly what happened in the case of downtown law firm Vinson & Elkins, which had originally planned to relocate its Dallas office to The Union. But construction delays led to the law firm staying put at Trammell Crow Center after the downtown skyscraper unveiled a massive renovation and adjacent development to compliment the high-rise office building.

And the suburbs around Dallas are also following suit, with Far North Dallas in Plano’s Legacy Business Park and northward on the Dallas North Tollway to Frisco boasting one of the region’s submarkets with the most construction — and one of the lowest vacancy rates of 15 percent, said Triolet, who has been studying the tenant movement in North Texas for the last decade.

“We are seeing the vacancy rates get chronically larger when it comes to older buildings,” he added.

Older, build-to-suit are often the most difficult to fill, Triolet said, with few companies seeking to lease or buy the aging office stock designed specifically for an early 1980s business.

This is a trend longtime Dallas leader Moody Younger has seen for some time.

“The new office buildings are not for everyone, but Dallas does like bright, shiny new stuff more so than older buildings,” Younger told CoStar News. “In Dallas, we are also still able to provide new buildings at a reasonable cost.”

For tenants seeking new digs, Younger said they want a combination of amenities in a new building coupled with the walkable location coming with new buildings being delivered today in North Texas.

“Well-located properties with amenities are leasing up and I don’t see that trend stopping,” he said. “This is what is hot right now and it’s here to stay for the foreseeable future.”

http://product.costar.com/home/news/shared/192928

Younger Partners’ Moody Younger & Steve Triolet Featured in Dallas Morning News Article

Businesses are paying a bigger tab for the newest D-FW office digs

By Steve Brown

North Texas businesses are paying a lot more for the newest office digs.

With the recent building boom, costs for the newest, first-class buildings are at an all-time high.

And the gap between what companies are paying for the top-of-the-market space is growing compared to older, so-called Class B buildings, a new study by real estate company Younger Partners found.

“The spread is definitely getting wider,” Younger Partners’ Steve Triolet said. “Office rental rates are at an all-time peak – well above where we were in the ’90s and the 2000s.

Historically the difference in average asking office rents between Class A and Class B buildings in D-FW runs just over $5 per square foot. Currently, the difference is more than $8 per square foot, Triolet said.

That shouldn’t come as a surprise with most of the newer buildings quoting rents in the $30s and $40s per square foot. Average asking rents for all types of buildings are more than $25 per square foot.

Tenants who don’t want to pay the extra rate for the shiniest new offices are finding more options.

“We are seeing an increase in Class B space availability because you have had a lot of new construction and that has pulled tenants to new buildings,” Triolet said.

While the rate of office rent growth is slowing in North Texas, Younger Partners’ founder Moody Younger said he’s not seeing a lot of giveaways yet to attract tenants.

“If there are some concessions creeping back in, it’s building specific,” Younger said. “But I do think that concessions are something to be aware of.

“Where we are seeing concession increases is in the tenant improvement packages which are continuing to escalate.”

Rather than give free rent, some new building owners are sweetening the deal with fancier interiors for their new tenants.

Younger Partners, the Dallas Cowboys & The NTCAR Hall of Fame

?The very best among DFW #commercialrealestate are being honored at the #NTCAR #HallOfFame event tonight including Dallas Cowboys’ Jerry Jones & KDC Development’s Toby Groves. Our own Kathy Permenter & Robert Grunnah serve on the HoF committee.?

Here’s a variety of shots from the Hall of Fame members with inductees, the Hall of Fame committee, Younger Partners brokers and some Dallas Cowboys, too.

Younger Partners’ Republic Center Lease Wins 2017 DBJ Best Real Estate Deal of the Year for Neighborhood Impact

Younger Partners was awarded the Dallas Business Journal Best Real Estate Deal of 2017 for Neighborhood Impact for the AIA Dallas & Dallas Center for Architecture lease at Republic Center. YP’s Kathy Permenter, Trae Anderson and Sarah Savage represented Republic Tower. Solender/Hall’s Eliza Solender represented AIA. #DallasBRED?
 For the full list of DBJ winners, click here.

D CEO ~ March 2014: A Big Shake-up in Dallas Commercial Real Estate

Changemakers at three DFW firms are transforming the business—and gaining market share.

Running a commercial real estate firm in Dallas-Fort Worth is not for the faint of heart. Firms here are at the top of their game, and the competition is fierce. But in a market as big and active as North Texas, there are bountiful opportunities, too. “So much of it comes down to hustle,” says Moody Younger of Younger Partners. “If you have good people and work hard and are honest with clients, you’ll get your share.”

Power_Brokers_Kathey_permenter_Moody_younger

Younger and Kathy Permenter, co-founders of Younger Partners, are part of a new leadership class in Dallas real estate, a group that also includes David Pinsel at Colliers International and Steve Everbach at Cushman & Wakefield of Texas Inc. All have been in their current positions for about two years. Younger and Permenter run their own shop; Pinsel and Everbach were both brought in to turn around the DFW offices of their respective companies. All have proven they have the mettle it takes to compete. Here are some of their strategies.

Complete Article.

Moody Younger: Hog Hunting and Commercial Real Estate ~ DRealEstate Daily, February 17, 2014

One recent Saturday I went on what has become an annual hog hunt with NAI Robert Lynn broker Sam Hocker. Sam introduced me to this sport a few years ago, and I have been hooked on it ever since.

Hog hunting with Sam on the Red River is not for the faint of heart. We hunt the hogs on mules, with dogs. Your only weapon is a Bowie knife, and you only have one knife, so you are not throwing it. This is brutal “hand-to-hog” combat.

The hogs fight back and sometimes win, by injuring the dogs, or you, and getting away. You have to keep your wits about you to avoid serious injury. The goal is to “bring home some bacon”, or a nice boar’s head as a trophy.
Fortunately, we did both on that Saturday.

How does this relate to commercial real estate brokerage?

Download complete article.

Dallas Business Journal – Billingsley to develop Cheddars’ new corporate headquarters in Irving

By Candace Carlisle, Staff Writer

Dallas-based development firm Billingsley Co. plans to build the new Irving corporate headquarters for Cheddar’s Casual Cafe, which marks the beginning of a number of construction projects at Cypress Waters.
Cypress Waters is Billingsley’s 1,000-acre master-planned development underway in Dallas and Irving, which has been developing the corporate campus portion of the project.

The developer will start construction on the single-story, 31,450-square-foot build-to-suit project in May at 8951 Cypress WatersBlvd. near Ranch Trail and Interstate 635 in Irving. Cheddar’s will have the ability to expand the building for future growth.

“As Cheddar’s continues to expand nationwide and our support center increases to support 150 restaurants in 28 states, it was clear we needed a headquarters that could accommodate our growing team,” Rick Payne, a Cheddar’s senior vice president, said in a written statement.

“Our new space at Cypress Waters will offer an open, collaborative design flow, a test kitchen for research and development and a training wing,” he said.

Jim Montgomery and William T. Mason of Swearingen Realty Group LLC represented Cheddar’s Restaurants. Moody Younger of Younger Partners represented the developer in the deal.

The new Cheddar’s headquarters will be Cypress Waters‘ first corporate office tenant.

Complete Article

 

 

DallasNews: Billingsley Co lands major tenant for its Cypress Waters project

Restaurant chain Cheddar’s Casual Cafe is moving its headquarters to developer Billingsley Co’s new Cypress Waters office park.

The company will relocate to a new 31,450 square foot office project that will start in late May at on Ranch Trail and Interstate 635.

Complete article.

Bisnow’s New Construction and Development Summit

Billingsley SVP investments and build-to-suits Marijke Lantz (far right, with Pegasus Ablon asset management VP Mark Roppolo and Younger Partners partner Moody Younger) says Billingsley’s 1,000-acre Cypress Waters project at LBJ and Belt Line opened 675 multifamily units (that were pre-leased) and has three buildings under construction, one with a HQ company, one spec, and activity is so strong that the firm is following up with another spec building. Her advice to people entering real estate world: Learn new things and learn all sides of the business to help your clients. Having a good reputation for being ethical and moral will benefit you throughout your career.

Dallas Business Journal – September 5, 2013 – Billingsley to begin work on ReachLocal office building

Dallas-based development firm Billingsley Co. will begin construction on its latest office project in Plano by the end of the month.
Once developed, the 180,000-square-foot, three-story building at 6111 W. Plano Pkwy. will serve as the regional offices for Woodland Hills, Calif.-based online marketing firm ReachLocal Inc., which currently operates from the International Business Park.
Complete article