News
Charles E. Haldeman Jr. is New CEO of Freddie Mac
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorMcLean, Va.–Freddie Mac’s board of directors has appointed finance industry veteran Charles E. Haldeman, Jr. as the company’s CEO as well as a member of the board of directors. Haldeman was chairman of Putnam Investment Management LLC, the investment advisor for the Putnam Funds, until June this year. Previously, he served as president and CEO of Putnam Investments. Freddie Mac expects that Haldeman’s employment and board tenure will begin in August 2009, following release of the company’s second quarter financial results. He will succeed John A. Koskinen who has been serving as Freddie Mac’s interim…
Charles E. Haldeman, Jr. is New CEO of Freddie Mac
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorMcLean, Va.–Freddie Mac’s board of directors has appointed finance industry veteran Charles E. Haldeman, Jr. as the company’s CEO and to the board of directors. Haldeman was chairman of Putnam Investment Management LLC, the investment advisor for the Putnam Funds, until June this year. Previously, he served as president and CEO of Putnam Investments. Freddie Mac expects that Haldeman’s employment and board tenure will begin in August 2009, following release of the company’s second quarter financial results. He will succeed John A. Koskinen who has been serving as Freddie Mac’s interim CEO since March 2009….
Rising Demand for Live/Work Housing, Says ULI
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorLos Angeles–With almost half (49 percent) of U.S. businesses being operated from home, the house is increasingly becoming the American office, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report from 2006, which is also the latest one available. And there are many more home businesses that have started since the downturn began last year, the Urban Land Institute (ULI) revealed at a seminar recently. Both these factors are making live/work housing increasingly popular, a topic ULI explored at the seminar. “There are so many scenarios with live/work housing,” Karin Liljegren, director of live/work housing for Killefer…
Kingsley’s Employee Engagement Program Helps MF Firms Drive Organizational Performance
The Kingsley Employee Engagement Program (KEEP) is a cost-effective tool for multifamily firms to drive organizational performance through improved employee satisfaction, loyalty and engagement. The survey-based program measures employee engagement, while identifying strengths, weaknesses and potential best practices within an organization. Through this program, multifamily firms can:• Optimize employee engagement and retention • Gauge the alignment of employee and company goals • Enhance employee/management relations • Identify ways to improve employee satisfaction and engagement After the employee engagement survey is complete, Kingsley Associates will develop actionable reports, which include: Key Performance Indicator (KPI) dashboards summarizing performance in the areas most directly…
TODAY’S DEALS: ARA Denver Brokers Largest Multifamily Sale of Over $9M in 2009 in the Denver Metro Area, and Other Transactions
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorArvada, Colo.–Apartment Realty Advisors (ARA) recently brokered the sale of a 182-unit property located at 6066 Lamar St. in Arvada, Colo. The buyer, a California private investor, purchased the property for a price of $9,200,000. This represents a price per unit of $50,549 and a price per square foot of $82.22, making LaMar Village the largest apartment transaction in the Denver metro area in 2009. LaMar Village was built in 1975, 1978 and 1982.According to Terrance Hunt, “Financing this deal was a challenge. It is no secret that it is tough to get even a…
Prospect Traffic and Quality Fall in Apartment Communities
By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorWaltham, Mass.—The number of applicants a community is processing per apartment decreased dramatically, according to a RentGrow report, entitled “Trends in Applicant Traffic and Quality.”Consistently over the last 10 to 15 years, processing rates, which measure how many applicants a community is processing per apartment, measured between 0.9 and 1 percent, or application per apartment unit, explains Mike Lapsley, CEO of RentGrow. Over the last 18 months, however, the average has dropped by about 20 percent, according to RentGrow’s data.Year-over-year, the processing rate change was the greatest between January 2008 and January 2009, with a 20.4…
Jamboree Celebrates 50th Affordable Property
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorIrvine, Calif.–Jamboree Housing’s 50th affordable property, Granite Court, is all set to open this month. The green apartment community is located in Irvine’s mixed-use neighborhood known as the Irvine Business Complex.With Granite Court, Jamboree’s portfolio is now valued at $2.08 billion including nearly 6,000 homes for approximately 15,000 residents. “Despite the economic downturn in real estate, the increased demand for more affordable housing – Granite Court’s waiting list nearly topped 4,000 names during construction – and the fierce competition for shrinking public funds, Jamboree continues to build and grow,” John Okura, senior project manager at…
U.S. Energy Group Launches Fuel Consumption Study for MF Buildings
Fresh Meadows, N.Y.–U.S. Energy Group has launched USE-Analysis, a large-scale fuel consumption analysis study, which is designed to define the amount of oil, or gas equivalent, that buildings in New York City typically use. The aim is to apply this information to help buildings achieve peak operating efficiency. USE-Analysis, which started with U.S. Energy’s existing customers and is now open at no cost to all New York City multi-family (rentals, co-ops and condos) and commercial buildings, analyzes key building indicators along with historical fuel usage to develop two numbers: the amount of fuel the building is currently using by “degree-day”…
Multifamily Starts Down More than 25% in June, But Highest Housing Construction Level Since November 2008
By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–Multifamily starts have fallen again; this time by more than 25 percent, according to the Commerce Department’s latest report. With no clear trend in sight, starts for June were at 101,000 units, which is a 28.6 percent drop when compared to May and a 74.8 percent drop year over year. There was a brief uptick in May when starts were at 143,000 units over April’s 80,000 units. In January they were 118,000, February saw an increase to 204,000 but in March they were down again to 129,000 units. Overall however construction was started on…
New Firm to Help Clients Capitalize on Self-Storage Distress and Then Some
By Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor Two real estate industry finance veterans have come together to create Davies Ingersoll Capital Partners, a firm offering debt and equity solutions, as well as investment opportunities to clients across the country, with a particular focus on the self-storage sector. Jim Davies, a former senior vice president and shareholder of Buchanan Street Partners, as well as was a co-founder and principal of leading storage finance concern Buchanan Storage Capital, is the firm’s president, while Peter Ingersoll, managing director of real estate services firm Sperry Van Ness/Davies Ingersoll, is on board as CEO. Newport Beach, Calif.-based…