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‘Capital Insights’ with Jack Kern: New York City Rents Stable but Still Down Y-O-Y
Sometimes, the power curve shifts and the resident gets to call the shots. Reminiscent of the Godfather, 1972 when Michael Corleone talks about how his Father made an offer the band leader couldn’t refuse, residents are seeing the benefits of negotiating lower rents (without horses or large menacing guys like in the movie). Rents for doorman buildings, according to the latest release from the May Manhattan Rental Market Report (see www.tregny.com <http://www.tregny.com> ) showed these declines: Studios – down 9.84% One BR – down 8.96% Two BR – down 4.53% Rents for non-dorman buildings performed this way: Studios –…
‘Guest Column’ with Scott Yahraus: Using Facebook at Your Properties
It is not a question any more, rather a certainty. Facebook is here to stay. It has become a part of our everyday lives. Once thought to be used only by Generation “Y”, social media has transformed our lives. The largest growing demographic happens to be females 40 years old and above. If the first phase of the Internet was to get everyone connected, then this second phase of the Internet is about getting the human network connected to each other. I recently heard on NPR (National Public Radio) that the epidemic of workers checking their Facebook pages was the…
‘Capital Insights’ with Jack Kern: Technology in Multifamily
“It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity.” Albert Einstein In the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test there is a line that says, “…we are all doomed to spend our lives watching a movie of our lives – we are always acting on what has just finished happening. It happened at least 1/30th of a second ago. We think we’re in the present, but we aren’t.” The increasing use of technology in the multifamily arena has become so prevalent it’s hard to believe we can’t survive without Twitter, or Facebook or Friendster or some other GPS…
Countdown to San Diego: Gain Insight into the Urban Landscape at Multi-Housing World
With gas prices steadily on the rise once again, developers and architects alike are looking more closely at alternatives to new construction in the suburbs. The antidote to sprawl, urban infill development has served as a catalyst for the urban revitalization process nationwide. Part of this process involves a closer examination of transit-oriented development. While the easy solution would be to simply place housing near public transportation, many urban areas are lacking in resources and funds. Around the country, the industry is asking how the market will affect the creation of new transit options that are meant to enable further…
‘Guest Blog’ with Scott Yahraus: The Green Fever! But What About the Cost?
It is everywhere and all around us! Being “Green”! It is hard to go through the day without seeing some advertisement for a product promoting itself as green. I see this for banks, retailers, and of course car companies. At the footnotes of emails that I receive there is often a message reminding me to “Think of the environment before you print this email.” If you are anything like me, you subscribe to several trade publications on the apartments industry, as well as the commercial real estate sector in general. This month, a leading apartment magazine ran a cover story…
‘Capital Insights’ with Jack Kern: The Springtime of My Discontent
“Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it, if it keeps moving, regulate it, and if it stops moving, subsidize it.” Ronald Reagan, 40th U.S. President, 1981 to 1989 I have become increasingly optimistic about the long term prospects for growth in the economy while at the same time becoming bearish on the newly reformatted democratic party’s view of economic popularism. It seems to me that the lack of accountability on the part of federal officials is beginning to rival the cowboy mentality that made Wall Street so…
‘Gimme Shelter’ with Daniel Gehman: Here Comes The Sun
Here in California, there’s a buzz brewing in the construction industry that’s going to have quite a future. As you may know, our state has imposed upon itself a noble goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions drastically over the next forty years or so. You may also be aware that buildings—their construction and operation–typically account for about forty percent of the GHG produced in the United States. Therefore, those of us who plan and design new buildings and communities are intently interested in figuring out how it will ever be possible to meet the stated goal. The quick answer, of…
‘Capital Insights’ with Jack Kern: Digital Sky Technologies Invests $200 million in Facebook
“In Russia, we only have two television channels. Channel One is propaganda. Channel Two consists of a KBG officer telling you: Turn back at once to Channel One.” Russian Comedian Yakov Smirnoff Hello Comrades. the next message you see may be from the Commissar’s office thanking you for contributing your information freely to the Motherland. Russian company Digital Sky Technologies just bought into Facebook and while there aren’t a lot of bells going off at the Federal Trade Commission, you can be sure the National Security Agency is working late nights trying to combat this one. If you happen to…
‘The Green Picture’ with Erika Schnitzer: The Government’s Greening Initiatives
The USGBC recently released its “Top Ten Ways to Use Recovery Funds for Green Buildings.” In its introduction, the report notes that local governments have begun to think “holistically about how to use recovery dollars to advance sustainability in the built environment,” rather than basing change on a “project-by-project” basis. This is pretty evident in the ever-increasing news about city and state efforts to mandate building standards and/or provide incentives to buildings that include a certain green checklist, if you will. While most, if not all, of the USGBC’s Top Ten can be incorporated into multifamily, I find No. 2:…
COUNTDOWN TO SAN DIEGO: Multifamily Conference Offers Advice on Circumventing Credit Crunch
Construction financing is still attainable, if you know where to look. Learn about obtaining and nenegotia ting for debt financing—including construction, acquisition and refinancing—in today’s difficult environment at the upcoming Multi-Housing World Leadership Summit 2009. The conference, which is produced in conjunction with Multi-Housing News magazine by Nielsen Business Media as part of the Nielsen Co., will be held from Sept. 29-Oct. 1 in San Diego. One panel in the Finance and Investment Track is called “Show Me the Money: How to Find, Negotiate and Secure Construction, Acquisition, Rehab and Permanent Financing.” The panel will be led by David Hendrickson,…