StreetLights Is Betting On Luxury Demand

StreetLights Residential isn't married to a geographic market. It has multifamily developments all over DFW, Austin and Houston, and will soon break ground on projects in California and Arizona. 

StreetLights president of development Tom Bakewell (here with his wife, Tiffany) says the company's focus over the next couple of years will be in markets outside of Texas. But all developments fill a certain sector in the renter market: luxury.

StreetLights goes beyond markets with large job bases and looks for cities with high wage-earning jobs (like tech jobs in Dallas). Luxury goes beyond finishes and comes out in amenities and—of course—mixed-use. People will pay more to be closer to that, Tom tells us.

And amidst reports of CBD multifamily markets softening, StreetLights, like many others, is considering building more in the suburbs and less in the urban core, Tom says. StreetLights may cater more to that going forward, especially with an influx of empty nesters and Baby Boomers becoming renters.

Tom says there will be long-term demand for its niche product of luxury residential within a complicated mixed-use project (like The Christopher at The Union), even if markets slow down.

As long as Dallas (and all of Texas for that matter) continues to create high-paying jobs, demand will follow, Tom says.

Hear more from Tom and many other multifamily experts at our 2016 Dallas Multifamily Surge. The event's tomorrow, but you can still register here.