Scott Fordham, president and CEO of TIER REIT (NYSE: TIER), joined REIT.com for a CEO Spotlight video interview at REITWeek 2016: NAREIT’s Investor Forum at the Waldorf Astoria New York.
Dallas-based TIER REIT operates a portfolio of office properties in select markets that lead the nation in both population and office-using employment growth.
Fordham said fundamentals remain “very strong” in TIER REIT’s core markets of Austin, Texas; Dallas; Atlanta; Nashville, Tennessee; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Denver.
The exception is Houston, Texas. “We’re going to continue to have headwinds there,” Fordham said.
Meanwhile, Fordham said the company’s number one priority is to sell some of its non-strategic assets in order to de-lever the balance sheet and pursue other opportunities. The company has targeted $200 million to $400 million in planned dispositions. Fordham said the buyer pool is “very active,” in part because of the high-quality nature of those assets.