The North Texas commercial real estate remains strong, so much so that some Fort Worth firms are expanding their geographic reach.
The latest is LanCarte Commercial Real Estate, which opened a Dallas office in January, part of the company’s strategic plan of growth over the next several years. M2G Ventures, a Fort Worth-based real estate investment and development firm, also has opened offices in Dallas and Austin during the past year.
Sarah LanCarte, founder and president of LanCarte Commercial, said the company was already doing work in Dallas. Along with the expansion, LanCarte Commercial added Bill de la Chapelle and Sharon Cramer to spearhead the Dallas efforts.
“We had collaborated and worked in the past,” she said. “When I had deals in Dallas, I would team up with them and when they had deals over in Fort Worth, they would team up with me, so it was already a natural collaboration.”
LanCarte said de la Chapelle had been a mentor for her early in her career.
“Having him on board to help grow our team and provide his wealth of knowledge is critical and very exciting for me,” she said.
LanCarte has seen de la Chapelle’s “tenacious commitment to the genuine success of each client and his skillful ability to work collaboratively.”
De la Chapelle also brings experience as a national tenant representative, she said.
“He represents clients all over the country, and we continue to do that, so having him on board really adds to that,” LanCarte said.
Because the United States faces plenty of economic concerns, including rising interest rates, LanCarte said, this might seem like an unlikely time for expansion.
“Capital markets have definitely slowed down over the last several months due to the increase in interest rates, but I think we’re probably coming around a corner where that will maybe start loosening up, depending on what the Fed does,” she said.
Despite those higher interest rates, LanCarte said, user demand continues to stay strong as North Texas’ population keeps increasing and businesses keep relocating to the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
De la Chapelle also said he is optimistic about the commercial real estate space.
“Texas is the No. 1 growth state in the country; the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area is the largest in the state and one of the fastest- growing areas in the country,” he said in a statement.
“Although the economy suggests that storm clouds are ahead, the greatest outcomes emerge from times of the greatest adversity. The best is yet to come.”
LanCarte sees evidence of the strength of the North Texas economy in lease rates, which continue to stay strong.
“We haven’t seen a dip in rates or a decrease in rates yet,” she said.
That is why she sees now as the time to invest and grow the business. She sees plenty of opportunity.
“There’s no better time than now to invest and grow,” she said.
Fort Worth will remain home base for the company that LanCarte founded in 2018. The company now has 30 employees.
“We were already doing work beyond even Dallas-Fort Worth, and we had planned to expand and have better coverage with people that focus on those markets, so this was just a natural growth opportunity,” she said.
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policyhere.
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