Rail-served assets are taking off, says NAI Partners director John Simons (seen here with NAI senior associate Holden Rushing), who has five deals totaling 300 acres in the pipeline. NAI will soon be delivering three rail-served buildings that are already 100% pre-leased. John sees the east side expansion continuing for the next three to five years.

The polyethylene and plastic resin industry is in hyper-expansion mode near the port. Those companies are competing against e-commerce groups looking to expand into the Houston market. There's plenty of demand and supply, the question is whether it can be built.

With recent expansion in the Port of Houston and the Panama Canal, US exports will soon grow stronger. That's why John likes to say waterfront property in the Port of Houston is like owning property in Manhattan.

On the other hand, NAI Partners' latest data shows that freestanding crane-served properties, which had been hot, have been very soft. Supply is at an all-time high but demand has taken a serious hit. NAI Partners is seeing free rent increases on seven- to 10-year deals.