AIMCO Slips to No. 3 Spot on Largest Apartment Owners Ranking
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–The apartment industry was buffeted by crosswinds in 2008, according to the National Multi Housing Council’s (NMHC) ranking of the 50 largest apartment owners and the 50 largest apartment managers. This is the 20th year since NMHC started the ranking.”The apartment sector is better positioned than most to produce…
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–The apartment industry was buffeted by crosswinds in 2008, according to the National Multi Housing Council’s (NMHC) ranking of the 50 largest apartment owners and the 50 largest apartment managers. This is the 20th year since NMHC started the ranking.”The apartment sector is better positioned than most to produce a robust recovery, however,” says NMHC President Doug Bibby. “It is not overbuilt, like the single-family sector, and demographic trends, changing lifestyles and our desire to grow more sustainably all point to strong long-term demand for apartments.” Â “All in all, there were fewer changes in this year’s NMHC 50 than we anticipated, given the turbulence of the economic environment today,” says Mark Obrinsky, NMHC’s chief economist. “Part of that is explained by a dramatic drop in property sales as a result of the credit crisis. Overall, transaction volume fell by more than 60 percent last year.” “Still, almost $38 billion in apartment properties changed hands, and NMHC 50 owners were prominent both as buyers and as sellers,” adds Obrinsky. “This led to a few notable changes in this year’s rankings.” For the first time in 11 years, AIMCO was neither the largest, nor the second-largest, apartment owner, having slipped to No. 3 after net sales of 38,208 apartments. MMA Financial is now the nation’s largest apartment owner. The St. Paul, Minn.-based firm owns 186,459 apartments. While some apartment owners were large sellers, others took advantage of the economic uncertainty to expand their portfolios. Among the acquirers, American Management Services (dba Pinnacle) stood out with the biggest gain, adding a net 16,048 to its ownership portfolio. The firm is now the 10th largest apartment owner in the nation.For the first time in 12 years, there are only two public real estate investment trusts (REITs) among the top 10 owners. There are now 11 REITs in the top 50 owners, down from a high of 14 in 2005, and their total apartment holdings has slipped to the lowest share of the overall market since 1997. On the management list, after seven years in the No. 3 slot and one year at No. 2, American Management Services (dba Pinnacle) moved into the top slot in the NMHC 50 management rankings. Riverstone Residential moved up a slot to No. 2 this year after adding more than 26,000 units to its portfolio. As was the case on the owners list, there were some large net acquirers among the NMHC 50 managers. In fact, 2008 saw the biggest management portfolio gain in 10 years by Greystar Real Estate Partners, which added 46,046 apartments to its fold. The five largest apartment owners in the country are: St. Paul’s MMA Financial, LLC (186,459 units);Boston’s Boston Capital (171,267 units); Denver’s AIMCO (158,950 units);Los Angeles’s SunAmerica Affordable Housing Partners, Inc. (152,315 units); andChicago’s Equity Residential (148,115 units).The five largest apartment managers in the country are: Seattle’s American Management Services (dba Pinnacle) (185,219 units);Dallas’s Riverstone Residential, A CAS Partners Company (181,928 units);Denver’s AIMCO (154,987 units); Chicago’s Equity Residential (148,115 units); andHouston’s Greystar Real Estate Partners, LLC (140,000 units).