Industrial Supply Shortage Hits Southern Nevada

Matter Real Estate Group has broken ground on a light industrial facility in Southern Nevada, a market that has seen strong industrial activity and is suffering from supply shortages. The market has benefitted from the nationwide industrial boom as well as supply shortages and premium rents in Southern California. As a result, Southern Nevada’s industrial market has grown substantially. Matter is bringing a 132,450-square-foot light industrial facility to the market.

“Demand is driven primarily by organic growth with the locally expanding market, as well as businesses that are fleeing the California market in search of better economics. Additionally, the southwest submarket, which has historically been the largest submarket in Southern Nevada, enjoys robust demand from industries that support the tourist corridor,” Jim Stuart, a partner at Matter Real Estate, tells GlobeSt.com. “The proximity to the Las Vegas Strip remains a large driver of business expansion in the immediate area.”

Located at 7952 West Warm Springs Road in Las Vegas, the property will have two condominium buildings with two grade-level dock doors and second-story mezzanine space. “We are aiming to deliver not only a high functioning project, but also a more modern aesthetic to create a pride of ownership for our buyers,” says Stuart. “We are spending additional dollars on enhanced landscaping and common areas that are not customary if this was a simple ‘for lease’ project.”

Industrial development is scarce in the market due to limited land sites, along with the development challenges—specifically construction costs—plaguing other markets. “Land scarcity and price appreciation are largely responsible for this scarcity,” adds Stuart. “Also, projects are just harder to get done and that has taken the smaller, more entrepreneurial developers out of the competitive set. Las Vegas has enjoyed record absorption each of the last three years, averaging six million square feet per year. However, the new developments meeting this demand are almost universally big box fulfillment centers. As the large institutions have chased this low margin business, they have stepped over the small to mid-size users. Matter is a more agile company and can build smaller projects profitably.”

Matter will target smaller box users. The property has flexible floor plans that can accommodate users as small as 6,000 square feet. “Our typical buyer is either a small to mid-size business owner who is seeking the advantage of real estate ownership, or it is someone with more cars and toys than garage space,” he says.