SPECIAL REPORT: Joint Venture Equity Providers Have Exited the Market, Say MHW Panelists
By Keat Foong, Executive EditorDenver–Speakers contemplated reduced levels of capital availability at a session addressing equity financing at the Multi-Housing World 2008 Conference and Exhibition, held from Sept. 16 to 19 in Denver. The session, entitled “How to Fund Your Project (II): Finding, Negotiating and Structuring Equity Financing,” was moderated by Brian Ward, managing principal, Big Rock Partners. Panelists at the session said that institutional investors have cut back on providing equity. And while preferred equity and mezzanine capital, as well as private syndication capital, are still available, they are greatly more expensive to obtain. Ward outlined the three types…
20-Story All-Glass Condo Project Tops Off
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorNew York–The Ascend Group recently topped off Georgica, a 20-story condominium project in Manhattan’s Upper East Side neighborhood. All 20 stories are now up and glass paneling is being installed. Located at 305 East, 85th St., the 58-unit development features gourmet kitchens and amenities such as a children’s playroom, a fitness center and an impeccably landscaped rooftop deck with a playground. In addition, the all-glass tower offers plenty of light and air. “We are not a huge development and offer residents more of a boutique-feel with just 58 residences and two to four residences per…
SPECIAL REPORT: MHW Audience Urged to Recognize the Characteristics of the Echo Boomers
By Keat Foong, Executive EditorDenver–Panelists speaking at a session at Multi Housing World 2008 Conference and Exhibition encouraged the audience to recognize the characteristics of the children of the Baby Boomers and target their marketing appropriately. The title of the session was “Reader’s Choice: Apartments Benefit During Downturn.” Moderator Jennifer Cox Cyphers, president of Multifamily Edge, The Cyphers Group, noted that there are 70 million Echo Boomers who will be in the market over the next 10 years. Echo Boomers are collegial, civic minded, collaborative, have good manners and are close to their parents, said Jeffrey Adler, chief property operations…
SPECIAL REPORT: In the Wake of Government Takeover of Fannie & Freddie, ‘Business as Usual’ But Underwriting Remains Tough
By Keat Foong, Executive EditorDenver—The official word is that it is “business as usual” for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac multifamily financing despite the recent government takeover of the two agencies, said Cheryl Higley, director of real estate mortgage capital at RBC Capital Markets.Higley was speaking at the session titled What is Happening in the Capital Markets and How Does it Affect Your Business at the Multi Housing World 2008 Conference and Exhibition. “The media hype” about the housing problems for the agencies falls on the single-family, and not the multifamily side, said Higley. Multifamily agency lending is “still operating…
SPECIAL REPORT: MHW Leaders Panel Highlights Reinvention while Staying True to Fundamentals
By Teresa O’Dea Hein, Managing EditorDenver–“Our world is changing fast and our customers are changing, but we as an industry are not fast to change,” pointed out Joe Peterson, president of Insight Real Estate Group, during Thursday morning’s Leaders Forum: The View from the Top. People sometimes blame market conditions for a lack of leasing activity, Peterson added, when they’re “just doing a crappy job, and still not doing the fundamentals” like first getting a prospect’s name and making sure they publish clear directions to a multifamily property.“The real key is marketing,” Peterson continued, “and that’s changed completely–today, we have…
Multi-Housing New TV Launches Today
In our ongoing efforts to expand the Multi-Housing News digital products, MHN TV will launch on our Web site today. In the first segment, six industry people weigh in on the bailout of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and AIG.While most agreed that the bailout, while not the best thing for taxpayers, was the only action that could be taken to prevent an even bigger economic crisis. A necessary evil, one said. Not bailing them out would have had bigger repercussions, said another.In addition, MHN editors sit down for one-on-one interviews with industry thought leaders attending the Multi-Housing World 2008 Conference…
SPECIAL REPORT: Economic Experts Say the Time to Buy is Now
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorDenver–In this time of ever-increasing economic turmoil, is it time to buy, sell or hold? At a Multi-Housing World conference session on the apartment investment cycle, three expert panelists seeking to make sense of the past week advise that now is the time to buy.If there are no problems in your portfolio, now is not the time to sell, advised Ron Brock (pictured), president and CEO, Pierce-Eislen Inc. However, he cautioned against purchasing certain properties, particularly luxury apartments and those located in the suburbs. “Condo development is out,” he noted. The “hot areas” are student and…
SPECIAL REPORT: In Time of Economic Turmoil, Panel at MHW Finds Some Silver Lining in Multifamily Sector
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorDenver–While there is plenty of bad news in the markets currently, panelists at the opening session of the 2008 Multi-Housing World Conference in Denver managed to find some good news to share with attendees. When Richard Green, Ph. D, professor and chair, University of Southern California Lusk Center for Real Estate, began his presentation this morning he confessed, “I find it hard to be optimistic at this time.”He painted a picture of the state of the economy and the way it relates to the multifamily sector. And though most of it was grim; spreads rising…
SPECIAL REPORT: Are Potential Fair Housing Mistakes Keeping You Up at Night?
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorDenver–With the growing concern over potential fair housing violations and the mounting number of lawsuits over such mistakes, it is crucial for the multifamily industry to be aware of a multitude of issues relating to the topic. At Multi-Housing World in Denver, a panel comprised of Anne Sadovsky, certified speaking professional; Nadeen Green, senior counsel, For Rent Media Solutions; and DJ Ryan, fair housing specialist, Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP, discussed “what should keep you awake at night.”Whether or not you make all efforts at following fair housing practices, it is imperative that you have…
Treat Green Guidelines as Tool, Not Goal, Say Panelists at Multi-Housing World Green Multifamily Session
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorDenver–The Multi-Housing World Conference kicked off yesterday in Denver with a series of workshops designed to tackle urgent issues facing the multifamily industry today. Green building, sustainable development, high-performance projects; whatever one’s term of preference may be, the issue at hand continues to garner growing interest in the industry. As four panelists with plenty of green credentials provided an overview of the various standards for green building today, they emphasized that those standards are tools to achieving the goal and not the goal itself. “Green is quality construction that is well thought out, planned and…