NWP Agreement with Waste Reduction Consultants Provides Waste Expense Management Solution
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate Editor Irvine, Calif.—NWP Services Corporation has announced an agreement with Waste Reduction Consultants Inc. to provide a total waste expense management product to NWP clients. While the two companies are “complementary in some areas,” in others, “we felt we could put our synergies together and make the value greater for our customers,” notes Jim Charles, senior vice president of product management and engineering at NWP.NWP will integrate its utility management product, UtilityPay Manager, with Waste Reduction Consultants’ waste expense management solution for multifamily.“We traditionally look at gas, electric, water and sewage as the areas we try…
INSIDE THE DEAL: Apt. Property Sells Quickly in Market Where ‘Rents Can Only Increase’
By Keat Foong, Executive EditorWest New York, N.J.—Apartment properties appear to be still moving relatively well in some markets. One such market may be West New York, N.J., where a sale marketed by The Kislak Co., Inc. closed in three months. Under rent laws in Hudson County, owners can increase rents to market by initiating capital improvements when residents vacate units. This offers the opportunity for an attractive value-add proposition with many of the apartment properties in the area. “The sale of these properties illustrates the continued strength of multifamily investment properties in both West New York and Hudson County,”…
REthink’s Inaugural Project is Greenest, and Most Musical, Multi-Housing Community in The Golden State
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorLos Angeles—REthink Development, a Culver City, Calif.-based real estate development and consulting company, is about to complete its inaugural project, the Lofts @ Cherokee Studios, a sustainable 12-unit live/work loft development in Los Angeles. REthink Development was founded by Steve Edwards, a real estate entrepreneur, and Greg Reitz, previously a Green Building Advisor for the City of Santa Monica, where he established many of the city’s green building programs. Edwards’ background in software, coupled with his experience in commercial real estate, led him to recognize that the “key is differentiation and the speed to market and…
Gerber’s Maxwell Dual Flush Toilet
Gerber Plumbing Fixtures LLC’s Maxwell Dual Flush is the company’s latest high-efficiency toilet (HET). According to the EPA, using a HET product (in place of a standard 1.6 gallon per flush toilet model) can save a minimum of 20 percent in annual water usage. Designed in an elongated front bowl, round front or ErgoHeight model, the Maxwell Dual Flush HET comes with a two-button actuator to identify between the 1.1 and 1.6 gpf flushing options. The Maxwell toilet is engineered with a large water surface and Gerber’s syphonic front jet flushing action, which properly cleans the bowl with a single…
Accessibility…ASAP!
By Julian Gordon, AmrampOver 54 million Americans—roughly 19 percent of our country’s population—have some sort of disability, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. And with that number growing every day with seniors, veterans and individuals recovering from surgery, managers and developers of multifamily residential communities are searching for ways to safely accommodate and appeal to disabled residents. These projects often need to be turned around as quickly as possible to avoid violation of the Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act, meaning traditional wood or concrete ramps must be substituted in favor of modular steel ramps that can be…
TODAY’S DEALS: Grandbridge Funds $2.6M First Mortgage for 256-Unit Class B Community, and Other Deals
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorTomball, Texas—Grandbridge Real Estate Capital LLC recently funded a $2.6M first mortgage for Lakewood Apartments, a 256-unit, Class B, garden-style apartment community. The fixed-rate acquisition, originated by John Fenoglio on behalf of Tomball Apartment Company LLC, was funded by Grandbrige and sold to Fannie Mae under its DUS program.The borrower currently owns an additional luxury apartment community in close proximity to Lakewood Apartments. The loan was closed in fewer than 45 days.Lakewood Apartments offers one- and two-bedroom units, ranging from 587 to 1,283 square feet. The community was 94 percent occupied at closing.Arbor Closes $2,025M Loan…
SPECIAL REPORT: At User Conference, RealPage Launches New Products to Help Businesses in Good and Bad Times
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorDallas–The RealPage User Conference kicked off this morning in Dallas with an opening session presented by president and CEO Steve Winn. With football as an analogy for running an apartment business, Winn explained how the company’s new products and upgrades can result in a winning game for their customers.“Football is the perfect metaphor for where we are in the multifamily industry today,” he said. “Challenges we face in the apartment arena can be likened to butting heads in a football game. But by using our new technologies, companies can overcome and beat their competition.” “We…
Q2 Demand as Weak as Expected Across Sectors–Except Multifamily
By: Barbra Murray, Contributing EditorThe dismal economy continued its stranglehold on the commercial real estate industry, as per CBRE Econometric Advisors’ recently released analysis, pushing up vacancies in the office, industrial and retail property markets. But there was one surprise. Demand in the multi-family sector, despite the ongoing job losses that are hindering the formation of new households, was essentially unchanged from the first quarter of the year. Neither the central business district nor the suburban office markets were able to put a lid on the growing stock of available space. Suffering an increase of 80 basis points, the office vacancy…
Withee Malcolm Receives Honors for Three Multifamily Communities
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate Editor Torrance, Calif.—Withee Malcolm Architects has received three top awards for its recent multifamily commissions.“We pride ourselves in creating projects that fit the context, that deliver based on what’s around it. We want to be good neighbors, but we want to have projects that enhance the community around it. Because we do infill, lifestyle is a big part of that,” Dan Withee, principal at Withee Malcolm Architects, tells MHN.Two of the honors were 2009 PCBC (Pacific Coast Builders Conference) Gold Nugget Awards. Withee’s Carson Senior/Workforce mixed-use project (top right) received the award for “Outstanding on the…
Nichiha Fiber Cement Siding Used in LEED ND Project
Nichiha fiber cement siding was recently included in Sustainable Fellwood, a 27-acre LEED ND project in Savannah, Ga.The project will feature NichiBoard Lap Siding, which is engineered to utilize the latest eco-friendly technology in fiber cement. It available in Smooth and Cedar finishes, as well as six widths.The panels, which are moisture-, rot- and termite-resistant, do not require sealant or caulk, as they are ship lapped on four sides. Its patented clip system creates a pocket of air between the panels and substrate, reducing the potential for moisture build-up. The siding is produced in an environmentally conscious manufacturing plant that…