LAS VEGAS—Hurricane Harvey undeniably rocked Houston, Texas, this year. The category 4 hurricane dropped more than 60 inches of rain on the city and produced powerful floods. While the market is still recovering—and will be for some time—we sat down with Lee & Associates Houston office co-managing principals Chris Lewis and Mike Spears for an exclusive video interview at the annual Lee & Associates broker's summit in Las Vegas.

Hurricane Harvey hit the Houston area in September, so the impact on the real estate market is unknown, according to Lewis and Spears. In the short-term, there has been an increase in temporary office leasing activity as a result of displacement from the floods, and companies with expiring leases leasing in the next year have signed early or earlier than expected for fears of rising rental rates. In the long-term, Lewis and Spears said that there is some question about how properties with severe flood damage will trade, and if flood damaged properties will be a deal breaker for investors will be a deal breaker. Development and redevelopment in the bayou area, which saw the majority of the flooding, may also see new restrictions for flooding. Overall, both Houston leaders expect the hurricane to have little impact on the commercial market.

Investment activity aside, the Houston office also showed tremendous community support and commitment in the face of the severe natural disaster. Several brokers took action to help others in the community, including a volunteer firefighter who helped save countless lives by taking a boat to flooded areas of the city and leading teams of first responders, to another broker who stayed at his flooded apartment building for days to help evacuate his neighbors. When the hurricane struck, brokers from across the nation offered to make financial contributions to aid their colleagues. Jeff Rinkov, the CEO of Lee & Associates, launched a GoFundMe campaign with a $25,000 goal, and within 24 hours, the firm's brokers had collectively donated $75,000.

In this video interview, Lewis and Spears talk about how the Lee & Associates Houston office served its local community during the disaster and share insight into how the aftermath of the hurricane will impact the Houston market.