Lease up and ship out
AIM, a national marketing and incentives company, offers cruise certificates to multifamily properties as a tool for leasing and retention. Long a standard in other industries, prospective residents are offered a 5-day/4-night cruise certificate...
Making onboarding work
Originally, the process of converting a newly-hired stranger into a fully-contributing and knowledgeable employee was left to the personnel department's most junior benefits clerk in the first-day orientation program, with the employee left to...
Perfectionism: healthy or hurtful?
I believe that the intention of most perfectionists is to do things well. To excel. Recent research shows that those scoring high on perfectionism scales have higher standards, and under certain circumstances have better...
Renters get help, boost their credit score
Back in January, one of the major creditreporting agencies, Experian, announced it would begin including rental payments in its credit score formula.
In response to Experian's decision, a cottage industry of websites has arisen to...
Turning stress into an asset
Stress is unavoidable. "We live in a world of ongoing worry, change, and uncertainty. You have to get used to it," says Justin Menkes, an expert in the field of C-suite talent evaluation and...
U.S. Postal Service: a requiem
Although the Senate recently extended the deadline for a $5.5 billion payment due to the federal government by the USPS to Nov. 18 from Sept. 30, the extra six weeks or so will not...
Why business despairs of Obama
Those who might help us escape are now being held back by the anti-business policies of President Barack Obama.
Obama's administration predicted a V-shaped recovery, based on the historical experience of the 1970s and 1980s....
The envelope, please…
"These finalists not only survived the bad times, but also produced fine work and should be commended," said Charles R. Brindell, Jr., chair of NAHB's Multifamily Leadership Board, CEO of Mill Creek Residential Trust...
The end of white picket fences
Wanda Rapp doesn't own her home, and doesn't want to. Her job makes her painfully aware of why she doesn't. Rapp manages repossessed and foreclosed assets for a bank in Los Angeles. Assets. Not...
How did we get here?
The answer undoubtedly depends upon one's definition of the Dream, and there are many from which to choose. John Winthrop envisioned a religious paradise in a "City upon a Hill." Martin Luther King, Jr....
Land of the free. Home of the brave.
It then describes the qualifications to become a member of our nation's military elite: "a focused, agile mind, astute awareness, physical toughness. That's what it takes to be part of the Army Special Forces."
Within...
Asset swaps, sales and spruce-ups
UDR, Inc. and AvalonBay Communities recently completed a $500 million asset exchange that helps to realize the property allocation goals of both REITs. The transaction includes the swap of three AvalonBay apartment communities in...
How to stay focused on the important things
"You're wrong," he said. "You don't know what my hunger is like. It's painful. Withstanding it might work for a week or two, but not for the long term."
I immediately knew that Jori was...
Why some people have all the luck
But luck in business isn't entirely, well, luck. There's a popular saying that "you make your own luck." This "make your own luck" principle has become a central chapter of a book I am...
Web 3.0: the social wave and how it disrupts the Internet
It's not that Katz, founder and CEO of travel recommendations site Gogobot, has doubts about the quality of these products. It's that the answer "depends very much on who is asking the question." And...
