NAA and NMHC are just around the corner. Deals are sprouting up everywhere and companies are changing, evolving and thriving in the world of apartments.
And within the hustle and bustle of this crazy wonderful industry, news and stories abound.
First, housekeeping. We have teamed with industry icon Tami Siewruk and the legendary Brainstorming crew, and have merged with her publication, MultifamilyPro. So, when you have finished reading this book, you will now receive credit for reading two.
The merger is merely the headline for an exciting story that will unfold over the next months and years. Look for a wider sweep of news and coverage, and a magazine with an expanded footprint. You will love it.
If there is one thing that Tami and I have in common, it is that we are both crazy about multihousing. Here is why:
Through all its cycles and despite its stigmas, multihousing professionals are intrinsically confident. Not because we are the favored son on Capitol Hill, because we are not. Not because we are welcomed at the table of civil planning for our social contribution. We are not. And certainly not because we will single-handedly solve weighty issues like immigration compliance or foreign language translation. We will not.
What we will do, as the stories in this issue attest, is step up to the plate, time and again, and make those crazy, wide-eyed deals with unabashed confidence. We will invent and reinvent housing concepts that bind people into groups called communities. We will remain ever- focused on efficient processes and on creating warm environments respectful of those we serve. Those who make our product home.
So find a comfortable chair, or recline your airplane seat as far as it will go, and allow us to bring you current on the people and deals that drive this mighty
MHP’s cover issue on Trump a couple years ago opened our inside pipeline on the man and his deals. He has never left the headlines, but here is the latest. He just quit The Apprentice (what timing!), is not short on commentary about the Rosie implosion, and continues his Johnny Appleseed movement to spread the Trump name around the world. The guy is an EverReady bunny when it comes to the media (but quite a regular guy in person).
In this same issue, we cover the Anti-Trump, Jerry Speyer, CEO of Tishman Speyer (cover story). Here is where it gets good. While seemingly unrelated, Speyer and Trump have very similar backgrounds with regard to the New York apartment scene. One eats headlines for lunch, and the other chooses a more reserved casting call. Yet, while Speyer speaks softly, he carries a big stick, or wallet –same thing. His deals are the biggest and his latest purchase of Archstone-Smith is a doozy. While the analysts are having a field day with this very excellent fodder, one is left to wonder about the fearlessness required to conceive a deal of such sweeping proportion.
Alas, there is much to learn in the many parables of multihousing.
For now, I will leave you to ponder the musings of MassInnovation’s Robert Ansin, with regard to his many billions of dollars in renovation deals on the East Coast. Says he, “The harder I work, the luckier I am.”
