Economics and the hidden order
The “real world” is calling. But the real world is a real mess. So how do we clean up the mess? That’s a massive task: too big for any one person. This looks like...
Why Johnny can’t build
We were once a nation of builders—from the toll roads and canals of the early nineteenth century and the railroads of the second half of that busy century, to the construction of power, energy,...
Major U.S. Supreme Court decisions coming down the track MAJOR UPDATE
June 28, 2024 Update: The Supreme Court in an unprecedented victory for multifamily and other businesses, has today reversed its 40-year-old decision in Chevron v. Natural Resource Defense Council. This law governed how courts...
Bozzuto acquires Gables property
Over the last decade and a half, it has made much more sense for Bozzuto to build rather than buy apartments. However, as it has become harder to pencil out new projects, the Greenbelt,...
The incredible disappearing Starwood CRE investor
The $10 billion fund from Starwood Capital Group has been trying to preserve its available cash and credit by limiting investor redemptions. In the first quarter, the fund was hit with $1.3 billion in...
Investors circle overleveraged apartments
Rescue capital is available for apartment borrowers that need it, but relatively few owners of over-leveraged apartment properties are willing to pay the price—so far. High interest rates have stranded the owners of over-leveraged apartment...
How to assess a resident’s request for an emotional support animal
Multifamily housing providers are faced with increasing requests from residents with disabilities for emotional support animals (ESA). Requests for ESAs are generating more enforcement actions. In 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development...
Deal watch
Oliver Emerson Development, a father-son duo, wants to turn the former Rockford Watch Co. factory in Rockford, Illinois, into affordable housing. “To be able to do it with my father and be able to contribute...
Rent control still the wrong solution to housing woes
Restricting the price of housing kills incentives to supply places to live. Rent control is having something of a moment: In Los Angeles, tenants are invoking a law that imposes limits on apartments built on...
Rules that make dishwashers, wash machines perform worse also illegal
Plaintiffs argue that the Department of Energy has no legal authority to impose its own water use limits on energy-consuming home appliances. The federal regulations that make dishwashers and washing machines worse are also illegal....
INFOGRAPHIC: Interest rates slow apartment development
Rising interest rates, tighter lending and flattening rents in parts of the country have left property companies from California to Florida waiting for financing that may not come soon. +500 days (up 45% from 2019)...
INFOGRAPHIC: Appliance payoff models explode
^58 percent increase in requested quotes to thousands of appliance repair businesses y/y (2022-2023) ^43 percent increase in appliance spend in 2023 compared to 2013—rising from $390 to $558 over the decade Why? 1987. Home appliances...
2024 could be the year of the distressed deal
Investors are finally starting to take advantage of distress in the multifamily sector, even though the huge wave of distress pundits predicted last year failed to materialize. In February, multifamily distress hit its highest level...
What to consider when buying property management software
Operating an apartment community is nearly impossible without the help of property management software. Choosing the right property management software is essential. With the property technology market bursting at the seams, how can operators determine...
Happier, more connected neighborhoods
A salve for America’s loneliness epidemic could exist right in front of its homes. Front yards are a staple of many American neighborhoods. Lush plantings, porches or trinkets can capture the attention of passersby and...