Howard Schwimmer
Analyst · Wells Fargo
Thank you Michael and thank you everyone for joining us today. As on past calls I'll update you on our markets and review our recent transactions which continue to be substantial. Let me start by providing some perspective on our markets, primarily utilizing market data provided by CBRA. From everything we see on the ground we are now clearly in the landlords market throughout all of our Southern California infill markets. We are experiencing strong performance executed by forward leasing demand, fallen vacancy rates, rising rental rates and an uptick in positive net absorption year-over-year. With vacancy rates tight it is not uncommon to see multiple tenants competing for the same space which should support the same growth in rental rates. In Los Angeles County, leasing activities has been strong through 2014 with an increase of 21% positive net absorption over 2013 with small sized buildings generating double the activity of larger buildings business during the fourth quarter. Vacancy finished the year 1.9% down 20 basis points since last quarter and down 50 basis points in the first quarter of the year, with continued upward pressure on rental rates, with asking lease rates increasing 3.2% over the prior quarter and 6.7% since the start of the year we expect rents to further increase by 6.7% over the next 12 months. The settlement of first [indiscernible] productivity will normal over the coming months which will remove the uncertainty in the regional economy. With that said, it's important to note that we had not seen any material slowdown in recent months. We believe that our portfolio which largely supports local commerce is less driven by the flow of trade in to and out of the region. Through 2014 Orange County generated over 1 million square feet of positive absorption. Vacancy rates remained tight in the region and finished the year at 2.7% which is an increase of 30 basis points from the third quarter and down 20 basis points year-over-year. Concessions are decreasing due to the market being constricted and highly competitive. The average lease rate was unchanged over the prior quarter and was up 3% for the year. We expect rents to increase 8.3% over the next 12 months as landlord pricing strengthens further. In San Diego county net absorption was positive for the 10th consecutive quarter which brought the year end total to more than 3.3 million positive square feet. Vacancy further declined 40 basis points to end at 6.3% closing in on the pre-recession level of 5.4% set in 2006. With less available products on the market average asking lease rates increased by 3.1% versus the prior quarter. The sustained increase in the average asking lease rate is notable on this region as they have increased 25% from the fourth quarter of 2011. Availability continued to decline and we expect landlord pricing power to continue strengthening. General market conditions continue to improve in the Zurich [ph] County posting its highest positive net absorption for the year in this quarter and throughout all of 2014, when Zurich County posted a strong net absorption of 1.6 million square feet. The vacancy rate declined 30 basis points from the last quarter to end at 4.5% and the average asking lease was up 8.5% for the full year. The Inland Empire generated one of the highest levels on record for net absorption putting the year-end total at 16.1 million square feet which is strongly above the 14.9 million square feet of net absorption generated in 2013, largely propelled by the expansion in growth the tenants in the market. Overall vacancy rate decreased 10 basis points over the prior quarter to end at 4.5%. Asking rents were relative flat in the region since year end 2013 as they was no sub-leasing there due to the large amount of development in the Eastern Inland Empire. Overall CBRA expects that asking rents will increase by 10.5% over the next 12 months although this could be tempered by an increased amount of construction that could bring the [indiscernible] back into the 9% range by the end of 2015. Based on the positive trends we see in all of our express [ph] market. We believe we are well positioned within our infill portfolio to capture the benefit of a tightening market for industrial space in Southern California. Now moving on to our transaction activity, during the fourth quarter we continued to execute on our growth strategies acquiring 12 properties totaling approximately 1.2 million square feet at aggregate cost of about $136 million. 2014 was a demonstrative year at Rexford, acquiring [ph] about $400 million and proving out our business model. Our earnings release has details of these transactions so I’ll only provide some insight and quick highlights. Also one of the acquisitions were off market or lightly marketed sales and they're all consistent with our value driven investment strategy. In November Rexford acquired Anderson Street, a 47,000 square feet two-story industrial building in downtown LA for $6.5 million or $137 per square foot. The property is 100% leased on a short term basis and we anticipate a stabilized yield of 6% on total costs after completing value add repositioning and re-tenanting. In November the company also acquired Nelson Road, a 203,000 square foot single tenant industrial building in the San Fernando Valley for $24.3 million, or approximately $120 per square foot. We anticipate a stabilized yield on total cost of 5.9% after dividing into a two tenant property and leasing the vacant building. In December Rexford acquired two industrial buildings totaling 240,000 square feet located at Business Drive and Slover Avenue in Fontana in the Inland Empire West from one seller for approximately $16.7 million, or approximately $69 per square foot. Both buildings are 100% leased at substantially below market rents, with 75% of the leases expiring in 24 months. I anticipated an initial yield of 4.8% and stabilized deals of 6.3% based on an upside anticipated on lease renewal or re-leasing. In December the company also acquired Ivy, a 46,000 square foot multi-tenant industrial building near LAX for approximately $5.9 million or $129 per square foot. Roughly at a 100% leased we anticipate an initial yield of 5.9% with upside expected as below market leases expire. In December the company acquired a five-property industrial portfolio in Oxnard, the largest industrial sub market in Ventura County, containing an aggregate of 408,000 square feet for $38.7 million, or approximately $95 per square foot. The portfolio is 93% and we anticipate an initial yield of 5.2% and stabilized yield of 6.2% based on upside anticipated on renewal or releasing. In December 2014, Rexford acquired Hindry Avenue an industrial complex located at LAX and consisting of three multi-tenant industrial buildings, with a total of 63,654 square feet for $11.9 million, or approximately $187 per square foot. The property was purchased from a lender after foreclosure and is 88% occupied. We anticipate an initial yield of 5.5% and a stabilized yield 5.9% based on additional occupancy with upside anticipated on lease renewal or re-leasing. And in December the company acquired Convoy Court, in Central San Diego County, consisting of 13 multi-tenant industrial complexes with a total of 187,763 square feet for $32.3 million, or approximately $172 per square foot. The project is 98% occupied. We anticipate an initial yield of 5.5% with upside expected on lease renewal or re-leasing. As we move into 2015 our guidance assumes that we acquire 250 million or more and I note that we have already closed about 31 million in first two months. We currently have more than $31 million of product in escrow and another 28 million under LOI that we anticipate closing in the coming months and quarters as we deploy the capital raised in our recent equity offering. As is typical our active pipeline includes as much as $1 billion under consideration or active pursuit. I will now turn the call over to Adeel