Vacancy in Mound House industrial area ‘exceptionally low’

A low vacancy rate in the industrial area of Mound House is a good sign for Carson City and the Dayton area, according to Mallory LaBranch, associate of LOGIC Commercial Real Estate and daughter of late Carson City Supervisor Brad Bonkowski.

“The exceptionally low industrial vacancy rate in Mound House is representative of booming industrial business in the Carson City area,” LaBranch said.

She and partner Blaise LaBranch recently completed a study on industrial vacancy in the area. They surveyed properties between Linehan Road and Baldwine Lane, finding a vacancy rate of .935 percent. The average monthly asking rent in the area was $1.03 per square foot.

“With less than 1 percent of the total square footage available, finding a space for any industrial, automotive or manufacturing use is rather difficult,” reads the study. “Further, with the largest contiguous space sitting at (approximately) 6,000 square feet, anyone looking for a medium-to-large-sized space will have to look elsewhere for such.”

A balanced market should have a vacancy rate of around 6 to 7 percent, according to the study.

“Under these conditions, tenants are able to fund spaces that suit their needs, and owners are able to keep their buildings leased with relative ease,” reads the study. “In today’s conditions, users simply don’t have enough options, while owners are seeing their available properties snapped up pretty quickly.”

Mallory LaBranch said in commercial real estate, the industrial submarket is the leader of all other sectors.

“When industrial booms, we consider it a good sign for the future of the local retail, office and residential submarkets,” she said. “Northern Nevada is a great place to live, work and play; with new occupants come new businesses and more innovation, which all need a place to operate. A vacancy rate less than 1 percent is, candidly, unheard of, and is the result of very strong demand coupled with limited supply.”

Businesses in Mound House range from manufacturing to construction to vehicle repair, including companies like American Ready-Mix, Harris Rebar, Comstock Propane and Tahoe Fence Company.

“This is why low vacancy is a positive sign for the area’s economy; these businesses are the foundation — sometimes literally — of Carson and Dayton Valley commerce,” LaBranch said.

She pointed out that in Reno, the industrial vacancy rate is at 3 percent. That figure comes from the real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield. Nationally, the rate is at 4.4 percent, according to Commercial Edge.

The LaBranch partners are working on a similar vacancy study for the Carson City area.

“Once we complete the Carson City vacancy study, we’ll be able to compare to Mound House and get more insight,” LaBranch said.

She said the most recent data for Carson City was collected in 2021, when industrial vacancy was at 3.8 percent. In 2019, it was at 5.2 percent.

“I would also add that one factor affecting low vacancy in Mound House is high construction costs,” she said. “It’s difficult for developers to take on new industrial projects right now, and for the last three years, and we’re certainly seeing ripple effects from that in the form of supply shortage. We don’t have a crystal ball, but we can say that now is a very good time to be a property owner in Mound House.”