In this podcast hosted by MHN's Laura Valean, Elizabeth Roy discusses shifting supply dynamics and what she’s watching as multifamily moves into its next investment cycle.
After more than two decades working across real estate banking, structured finance, lending and investment management, Elizabeth Roy has learned to look at a deal from more than one angle. Now, as the newly appointed chief investment officer of American Landmark Apartments, she’s bringing that perspective to a multifamily market where capital is expensive, supply dynamics are shifting and investors are being forced to rethink what creates value.
In this episode of Mission Success: Women in Multifamily, Roy joins Multi-Housing News Executive Editor Laura Valean to discuss the experiences that shaped her investment philosophy, from navigating multiple real estate cycles to evaluating opportunities through both the debt and equity sides of the capital stack. That background, she says, allows her to think about both “how do we not lose money” and “how do we make money”—a distinction that’s particularly relevant in a market where underwriting assumptions are under intense scrutiny.
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The podcast also explores what Roy sees happening across the Sun Belt and where opportunities may emerge as the recent wave of apartment supply recedes. Additionally, she weighs in on higher-for-longer interest rates, the still-evolving value-add thesis and why buying at the right basis today could prove particularly important over the next several years.
Beyond the numbers, Roy reflects on reaching the C-suite in an industry where women remain underrepresented in senior investment positions. Her advice is straightforward: Strong performance matters, but so do relationships, visibility and advocating for yourself. From career lessons to the investment calls facing multifamily owners today, the discussion offers a look inside the thinking of a CIO taking the reins at a pivotal moment for the sector.
Here’s a snippet of the conversation:
- (00:54) Meet Elizabeth Roy, the new CIO at American Landmark
- (01:16) From analyst to CIO: the seats that shaped her
- (04:31) What a debt lens catches that acquisitions teams miss
- (05:50) Cycles, setbacks and underwriting discipline
- (08:40) Breaking into the C-suite as a woman in finance
- (10:54) Stepping into a new CIO role: what to change, what to keep
- (12:39) Pairing institutional rigor with boots-on-the-ground operations
- (14:34) Which underwriting assumptions get the most scrutiny
- (18:57) Temporary supply overhang vs. genuinely weak fundamentals
- (20:39) Closing the bid-ask gap and where the opportunities are
- (22:26) Where value-add still works without aggressive rent growth
- (24:18) Three-to-five-year outlook and underestimated risks
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