Digital Realty (the world's largest data center provider) purchased a 62k SF data center for $8.5M in Dallas as well as three buildings in Phoenix totaling 227k SF for $24M. VP Bryan Marsh, who handles the Texas portfolio, tells us Digital Realty's strategy is a combination of ground-up development, acquisitions, redevelopments, and sale-leasebacks. The Dallas site was a good fit: fully occupied by a sole tenant and is in one of the top five US data center markets.

Talking Texas: Bryan says Dallas, Houston, and Austin are all good markets for the firm and San Antonio is on the radar. His company likes to have product ready to move in, and Digital Realty's Digital Dallas Data campus started construction on the next two data halls, built in 10k SF increments of raised floor. It's bullish on its pipeline and the demand is out there, he says. There is a 125k SF purpose-built shell building available to address the trend of larger tenants taking full occupancy. Digital Realty's 1M SF Convergence campus in Lewisville is fully leased, but with 170 acres there, Bryan says there's room to grow. (We suggest merging asset classes; but, then again, we've always wanted to live in a data center.)