Mayor Michael Hancock
Ralph Pace
Ron Throupe
Chaz Mueller
the recovery and I think that rhetoric is outdated when we talk about
the Colorado market”. Sobetski also noted that the labor forecast is
favorable for 2015. Quantitative Easing and plummeting oil prices are
indicators that could point to a downturn, but unemployment is low
and an influx of new renters bodes well for the industry.
Jeff Hawks
Jenny Jacobs
Greg Sobetski
Dan Flanagan
Presenting Sponsors
With demand for new units at an all-time high, the fear many have
expressed is that wages will not be able to match that growth. Across
the country, wages are up 19 percent since the peak of the recession,
while Colorado’s are up 20 percent. Sobetski believes that Colorado
will continue to pull away from the national average and continue its
upward trend.
Overall, households are spending more money and growing healthier as a result of the business-led recovery. This theme carried over to
Ralph Pace’s presentation as well. As a Senior VP at U.S. Bank, Pace
presented a unique view from the perspective of the lender.
Pace began his presentation by thanking the multifamily industry.
After the downturn in 2008, multifamily investors were the first to
incur risk and start borrowing again. This has led to a substantial amount
of debt and equity available to borrowers and investors today. Pace
echoed Sobetski in saying it was almost a certainty the Fed will raise
interest rates in 2015, but downplayed the effect it will have on multifamily investors. “We are absolutely looking forward to the rate increases; it will be good for banks”. Pace continued that rates are at such
historic lows that the market can absorb these slight increases before
it becomes damaging to the industry.
Platinum Sponsors
Chaz Mueller, CEO of ConAm, gave a broader perspective of the
economic forecast of 2015 noting that job growth remains paramount
in determining market strength. Colorado is an outlier, performing
better than most of the country, but the national job claims remain
strong as well. While unemployment goes up, the focus shifts to those
underemployed. Mueller touched on stagnating wages and the necessity for those to match the growth of the market. However, Mueller
also noted that this too is on the mend, and will catch up eventually;
“the wind is at our backs and will be for years to come”.
Cautious optimism seemed to be a resounding theme of each
speaker at the conference. Yet, while enjoying the successes of hard
work and sacrifice, it is important to seek balance and remember all
economies are cyclical.
18 | TRENDS • FEBRUARY 2015
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