Save the drama for your mama, not San Antonio MOB

​SAN ANTONIO – There has been plenty of drama in San
Antonio’s medical office market over the past six months, but even with a few
bumps in the road, it sailed through third quarter 2015 as stable as ever.

According to REOC’s latest medical office market report, the
citywide vacancy rate stayed below the 20 percent mark, closing out the quarter
at 19.5 percent. 

While that is a 1.1 percent increase from the same period last
year, the $0.70 increase in rents indicate the market is as strong as ever.

By the end of 3Q 2015, the citywide average quoted rent for
medical-only space rose to $24.49 per sf. 

The leading submarkets were the Far
North Central and Far West, which posted average rents at $29.41 per sf and
$29.89 per sf, respectively.

But that is not to say it has not been tested.

When Victory Hospital declared bankruptcy this past June,
there were plenty of concerns about what would happen with the Northwest San
Antonio property. 

However, those were eased once Post Acute Medical affiliate
Cumberland Surgical Hospitals LLC signed on to fill the 82,316-sf space.

Over at the $90 million Forest Park Medical Center (FPMC) — another
bankrupt hospital facility located around the I-10 and Loop 1604 intersection — a proposed sale of the facility has hit a snag​. FPMC says it has a buyer for the Forest Park Medical Center building, but that Texas Capital Bank has neither accepted nor rejected the offer​, according to the January 4, 2016 edition of the ​San Antonio Express-News​​.

The REOC report found that, despite those headlines, the
multitenant, medical-only office market remained true to its slow and steady
reputation. 

Vacancy rates are expected to soften a bit given the volume of new
developments slated to hit the market next year, but when all said and done,
healthy preleasing will help to boost positive net absorption in the market.