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Niche Guys Win

Meet five multifamily firms that know how to make the most of their very specific markets.
Due Diligence Disasters

A lot of unexpected findings can come up during the project vetting process. Here's a sample of some of the more intriguing ones.

Renters' Cash Payment Options Expand

A recent entrant has launched a service that addresses the issue of renters who wish to pay with cash. Though it helps, how much of the...
Behringer Harvard CEO Aisner Addresses Questions

Behringer Harvard has recieved some bad press in the last month. Robert S. (Bob) Aisner, president and CEO dicsusses those issues with...

Mandated Renter's Insurance Programs On the Rise
As mandated renter's insurance programs proliferate in the apartment sector, operators look to tactics from the auto and mortage industries to fill coverage voids.
Assurant Acquires SureDeposit
New York-based specialty insurance provider Assurent has acquired SureDeposit, a provider of alternatives to resident security deposits.
Owners in the New Economy: Grappling with Insurance Costs
Experts like Wadsworth say many multifamily firms—particularly those without risk management units—are not likely to fair as well with renewals this year as property and liability insurance costs continue to increase due to the overall weak economy.
New Report Calls for Bold Action to Protect the Country’s Coastlines
On the heels of the 2009 hurricane season, a coalition of insurers, public officials, risk experts, builders, and conservation groups have released a blueprint of policy changes and common sense actions likely to reduce hurricane-related economic losses along U.S. coastlines by as much as half.

Three Takeaways from Third-Quarter Earnings Calls
For most analysts listening in on the apartment REITs’ third-quarter conference calls, fundamentals were the key. They wanted to know where rents were moving, whether traffic slumped after August’s economic woes, and the will fare in the traditionally slower winter months. While those questions...
REITs Report Uneven Traffic
Coming into the apartment REITs' third-quarter conference calls, analysts had one overriding concern: Is there a slowdown looming?
Three Things to Listen for in REITs' Q3 Earnings Calls
Most third-quarter conference calls are usually just a warm up for the fourth-quarter calls. Analysts know the real news comes in the fourth quarter when apartment REITs start to provide a picture of what the coming year looks like.
Three REIT Trends to Watch
Like just about every other sector on Wall Street, the apartment REITs have been beaten up the past couple of days, seeing their values move down about 4 percent on average. But that doesn’t diminish the positive results they’re seeing on-site. Even as the jobs picture continues to look shaky, the...

Economics Continue to Make Ownership an Uphill Battle
Economists Warn of Double-Dip, Rent Disparities at State of Industry Roundtable
The economists at the Multifamily Executive Conference’s annual Economic Roundtable and State of the Industry panel are optimistic that the country won’t experience a double-dip recession.
Home Ownership Declines as Consumers Flock to Apartment Rentals
Consumers flock to apartments as American housing psychology reacts to the recession.
Zandi: Recession Will End This Year
Moody’s economist also says housing will not be ‘an early source of growth’ in this recovery.

Multifamily Developers See Competition Stiffen
Multifamily Developers See Competition Stiffen
Common Sense Should Prevail When it Comes to Deals
Though buyers have returned with some significant in 2010, it's important to allow sense to reign.
The Multifamily Land Market Shows Signs of Life
After nearly two years of stagnation, multifamily REITs and private firms began to eye opportunities in the land market.
Multifamily Land Market Shows Signs of Life
In another sign that their could be life in the long dormant land market, San Francisco-based BRE Properties announced Tuesday that it had acquired 2.4 acres of land in downtown Sunnyvale, Calif., for approximately $19 million. It plans to build 280 units on the site.

Five Ways to Save Money on Construction
As developers begin to look at whether new construction pencils out again, architects, property managers, and general contractors are getting a lot of calls to do studies and help underwrite deals. Some of these proposals will turn into nothing, but others could eventually lead to starts. What...
American Professor in the Middle East Concocts a Way to "Grow" Bricks
Her process, which mixes chemicals and bacteria, could supplement conventional bricks whose production causes a lot of pollution.
Four Creative Ways to Increase the Bottom Line
Some multifamily firms have been able to creatively wrestle new dollars, while cutting expenses, by uncovering latent opportunities throughout the downturn.
Summer Showers: Multifamily Firms Conserve with High-Tech Irrigation System
Many apartment communities around the country are well into their peak watering season (usually March to June). But turning that spigot on is getting more and more expensive.