Highwoods Properties, Inc. (NYSE:HIW) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

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Unidentified Analyst: Good morning. This is Ari Tyres on for Michael Griffin. My first question is on the turn to office. How are you seeing return to office faring across your Sunbelt markets? Are there any markets or tenant types that are coming back stronger than others from a utilization perspective?

Ted Klinck: Hi Ari, it’s Ted. Look, as you know, the Sunbelt markets have probably come back quicker than a lot of the larger gateway markets. I think not necessarily types of tenants, really size of tenants. Our return to the office has really been the smaller customers, suburban customers, as well have been the first ones back. They’ve been back for a really long time. It’s the larger companies, a large public company as well, have been a little slower in terms of their returns. So, I think it’s more customer size than it has been a type of customer, type of industry.

Brian Leary: Hi Ari, Brian Leary to clip on there. The three days of the week, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday is absolutely when we’re seeing our occupancy. So financial services in Charlotte, the buildings are full, top level of the parking garage is getting parked on. And so, we’re even seeing the larger ones have implemented their hybrid work week. Three-two is what we hear a lot of. So Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday is when we’re seeing the majority of folks in our buildings, driving restaurant sales, sundry sales, things like that.

Unidentified Analyst: Helpful. Thank you. My follow-up question is on the activity backfill. Wondering if you can comment on what the backfill rent is in 2024 relative to activity was paying?

Brendan Maiorana: Hey, Ari, it’s Brendan. Yes we had a modest roll up from a cash basis versus where Tivity was. And then a more normalized kind of GAAP roll-up in the double-digit range. So, we found that that was €“ we were very pleased with that execution given that Tivity was a build-to-suit done in 2007, 2008 and had healthy bumps that compounded over 15 years. So, I think we were pleased with the execution from a leasing standpoint to be able to roll that up on a cash and GAAP basis for the new customer.

Unidentified Analyst: Great. Thanks for the time.

Operator: Our next question is from the line of Blaine Heck, Wells Fargo. Please go ahead.

Blaine Heck: Great. Thanks. Good morning. You guys talked about the flexible work options you guys are providing within the portfolio. Can you just expand a little bit on that? Are there specific buildings or markets that those suites or flexible spaces work best in? And how much of your office space do you think could eventually be converted to more of a flexible use?

Brian Leary: Hey, Blaine, Brian Leary, good morning, thanks for the question. This is how much time does everyone have, because I’m obviously pretty passionate about this. So I’ll be honest with you, it started with the momentum that we garnered a few years ago with rolling out spec suite program. And as we started to realize that not all spec suites are the same or customers are the same, or BBDs are the same, or buildings are the same. We started to flush out a matrix that can be applied across markets and BBDs to custom Taylor for instance in Brentwood. We’ve been very successful in Nashville rolling out floor by floor of our common spec suites, where there’s a certain different complexion of the user that goes in there, what the rents are and that carries a certain amount of amenity base, where you look at a Buckhead collection, the type of customers that’s there, we’ll be able to demand and pay for something different.

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