Signs of DFW Growth in Post-COVID Recovery

DALLAS—With a post-pandemic landscape on the horizon, commercial real estate hiring will possibly ramp up in the not-too-distant future. In preparation for the surge anticipated in the Dallas metro, real estate recruitment firm RETS Associates recently opened a new office here. Jana Turner, principal of RETS Associates, recently discussed the impetus for this move, what it says about the status of employment in this industry and where she sees Dallas commercial real estate hiring heading.

GlobeSt.com: What makes Dallas a promising market for CRE employment?

Turner: Dallas/Fort Worth is the seventh largest metro area in the country, and many real estate companies are located here. In fact, several CRE firms including CBRE are locating their headquarters in this great city, and the CEO of Cushman & Wakefield recently moved to Dallas.

In addition, Texas is known for its business-friendly policies, and November 2020 marked the seventh consecutive month of job growth in that state. Dallas is at the forefront of this growth, with a favorable unemployment rate and a higher percentage of companies returning to their offices in this market than in any other US city. Also, the Dallas/Fort Worth metro showed impressive development activity in a year marked by COVID-19, which bodes well for CRE hiring demand in this market. All these factors point to continued growth in the Dallas real estate market once post-COVID recovery begins.

RETS has served many of the major Texas markets in the past 10 years, and this expansion allows us to establish a broader and deeper presence in these growth cities including Dallas, Austin and Houston, which will kick off increased demand for qualified candidates to fill positions as they open up. And, we’ve hired Chase Fryhover, a successful recruiter in the Dallas market, to lead this effort for RETS as our director of the new Dallas office.

GlobeSt.com: How does the new Dallas launch reflect the state of commercial real estate hiring as it stands now?

Turner: With 10 months of dealing with an unprecedented pandemic and an uncertain political climate, CRE executives have been operating under a to-be-determined business environment. Now that the election is finally behind us, and a viable and safe vaccine is being distributed, companies are beginning to see the light and planning where growth opportunities will be for their businesses. We anticipate there will be a renewed call for top candidates to help them realize these opportunities, and we’ve opened this new office to assist in that effort.

There are always opportunities in real estate, regardless of the state of the economy. We anticipate growth in all type of positions, particularly in the industrial and multifamily sectors, as well as seniors housing and self-storage.

GlobeSt.com: Where do you see CRE hiring in Dallas heading this year?

Turner: Dallas has an enormous head start on getting its economy back on track this year. We predict companies will leverage this advantage by aiming to attract top talent before other markets do.

There has also been a surge of companies leaving California and other states for Texas in recent years for a variety of reasons, which is encouraging news for the major Texas cities. In addition, the major Texas cities offer a solid labor pool from their great colleges and universities. This enriches the inventory of top talent and enables us to provide our clients with the best candidates to help them achieve their business objectives. All signs point to a healthy CRE market in Texas as the pandemic subsides.