Archive for April 2009
Puget Sound Energy Awards $650,000 to Multifamily Communities with Energy Conservation Plans
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorBellevue, Wash.—Puget Sound Energy (PSE), Washington state’s oldest and largest energy utility, and a subsidiary of Puget Energy, recently awarded $650,000 in grant agreements for the company’s Multifamily New Construction program, which helps new communities that are incorporating energy conservation into their buildings.”Conservation is a big priority,” notes Rebekah Anderson, corporate…
Read MoreApartment Finder Signs on OLX as Partner
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorLawrenceville, Ga.–Apartment Finder has signed on an online partnership with OLX.com to publish its apartment rental listings on the web. Through this alliance, Apartment Finder hopes to deliver greater online exposure and leads for its advertisers to apartment shoppers in the 84 countries that OLX.com serves. “We understand how vitally important…
Read MoreEDITOR’S NOTE: Is Your Laundry Room Working For You?
By Diana Mosher, Editor-in-ChiefNew apartment communities are being constructed with eco-friendly materials and processes, but older properties can also implement a green agenda. Whether your communities have laundry rooms or in-unit appliances, this is an easy place to start and one that’s sure to build resident awareness of environmental concerns. You can also use a…
Read MoreBuilding High Performance/Green Buildings is Critical to Multifamily Real Estate’s Future
By Adrienne Faulkner, Faulkner Design GroupWhile many real estate professionals are skeptical that going green is the right thing to do—much less that it makes economic sense—it is important that we all commit to it. Whether you are a lender, investor, developer, architect, contractor or owner, it really does make economic sense that equates to…
Read MoreCertainTeed Adds Recycled Content to ToughGard Duct Liner
CertainTeed Corp. has added 25 percent recycled content to its ToughGard duct liner, which is primarily used as an acoustical liner in HVAC duct systems.The liner has received GreenGuard Indoor Air Quality certification and can help earn U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) points.The liner, which is designed to…
Read MoreINSIDE THE DEAL: How a Loan is Done in the Nation’s Worst Economy
By Keat Foong, Executive EditorAnn Arbor, Mich.—Given its location in Michigan—the state with the troubled automobile industry and the highest unemployment rate in the country—how did a 44-unit property here obtain financing recently? The answer is that Ann Arbor is one of the “pockets of stability” in the state, according to Aaron Klein, president of…
Read MoreCompany Plans to Acquire Distressed Condo Properties, Move them Into Rental Market
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorIrvine, Calif.–Sycamore Urban Properties, a firm that specializes in acquiring and stabilizing new and converted condominium properties that have fallen into distress since the housing bubble burst, recently made its first acquisition. The company acquired a 41-unit, newly constructed townhome development in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. Sycamore Urban purchased the note…
Read More“Gimme Shelter” with Daniel Gehman: Design Values: Vitruvius Redux
When the ancient Vitruvius attempted to capture the essence of architectural quality many centuries ago, he arrived at a tri-partheit formula: “firmness, commodity and delight.” To very roughly translate that into today’s terms, every building or project should be evaluated on the basis of “Will it last? Will it work? Will it please?” Naturally, the…
Read MoreTODAY’S DEALS: Love Funding Closes Three Loans of Over $9M, and Other Transactions
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorEden, N.Y., Holland, Mich.–Love Funding recently closed three loans, totaling $9,526,300, for two assisted-living facilities and one multifamily housing complex located in three different states. Midwest Regional Director Bruce Gerhart secured $8,825,100 in financing for two assisted living facilities in New York and Michigan. He closed a $4.9 million refinance…
Read MoreMouser’s Custom Cabinetry’s New Door Styles
Mouser Custom Cabinetry has recently introduced the Estate Moulding option (pictured left) and the Open and Closed Louvre doors (pictured right). The Estate Moulding Option expands on the current selection of door styles by incorporating decorative moulding into the door design. The applied moulding addresses a growing trend for decorative and wide rail doors. The…
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