Dallas Multifamily 2026 Panelists Cautious, Hopeful About Industry Future

With so much competition, its doing the little things right that seemed to be a prevailing theme among several panelists at the recent Connect Texas Multifamily Dallas event at the Joule.

John Tullo, from Apartment Management Consultants, said in a competitive market like Dallas, which has an 89% occupancy rate and a number of desirable amenities, it all boils down to execution: “You’re not winning on countertops or location, because there are plenty of good options. If you’re missing your mark on anything that is controllable, they’re moving across the street. Are you responding to leads? Are you doing anything to differentiate your product? Those are the things you can control.”

Red Oak’s Gary Bechtel weighed in, noting that people are moving to Texas in droves. “There is a lot of overbuilding. It’s had a negative impact on rates and absorption. It gonna take a couple of years to work its way out. A lot of developers are looking outside the big cities, like College Station and El Paso.”

Affinius Capital’s Hailey Ghalib stated, “There appears to be near-term operational pressure from the wave of supply that we’re continuing to work through, but it’s improving.”