It’s good to be king
I sometimes wonder if landlords aren't single-handedly holding this economy together. And after reading Peggy Shaw's cover story, "Landlords Rule," I would almost bet the farm that we do.
Except that the farm isn't worth...
Dog DNA service helps apartments catch poop perps
"It's kind of like the 'CSI' of dog ownership," said Trongard, marketing director of the company that manages Rosedale Estates North, a 180-unit apartment community in Roseville, Minn.
Most are familiar with DNA testing from...
Spycatcher: An ex-FBI agent on deception, espionage, interrogation, and reading people
Perhaps she learned it from her mother or perhaps from her classical training in ballet, but she instinctively read my body language and used that to communicate back to me. There hasn't been a...
Smokers face rental hurdles
One category, however, turned up very lean results: apartments that advertised they allowed smoking with an enthusiastic "welcome" or even a tepid "O.K."
In all five boroughs, there were only four.
"If you're looking for a...
Are you a closer?
Dominance is gaining the willing obedience of the customer. The customer listens to your opinions and advice, internalizes your recommendations, agrees, and when you close the sales call, follows your course of action. Your...
Building the braintrust
The future of utility management in our industry is abundant in opportunity, yet fraught with challenge. Collaboration is critical as we move forward, and that's why I'm proud to serve as president and chairman...
Young blood
Carroll acquired a diverse skill set early on. He built single-family homes, a retail shopping center, mixed-use, student and affordable housing and traditional apartments, launched two syndications and acquired a couple of his competitors...
Freaky-indicators
Unclaimed corpse indicator
The concept: Because of high funeral costs, family members never claim the bodies of the deceased so the state will pay for costs.
The proof: In 2009, at the height of the financial...
JP Morgan’s big loss: Why banks still haven’t learned their lesson
Even the trading operation that booked the loss is in the black overall. Aren't losses part of the game? Why does one loss matter if it is more than offset by other trades' gains?...
Hot markets boost REITS
Tight supply and a depressed single-family housing market are combining to keep apartment buildings full and driving rental rates higher, in our view, benefiting these companies. REITs reported average occupancy figures of more than...
Renters feel squeeze
Renters are considered "cost burdened" if they spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent and utility costs. The research was conducted by Jessica Bean, vulnerable families research associate at the Carsey...
Consumer confidence dips
The Conference Board, a private research group, said that its Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 64.9, down from a revised 68.7 in April. With gas prices falling, Americans were expected to push the...
Equity Residential vies for Archstone, again
Archstone is a private company which owns, operates and develops multifamily apartment properties. It was owned by a consortium of financial institutions including Bank of America, Barclays, and the bankruptcy estate of Lehman Brothers...
Apartment upturn lifts Post Properties
Back then, Post's stock fell far below the offer it received, which was in the mid-$40-a share range. Shares dropped to below $10 in 2009.
Those that held on through the dark days have been...
Job recovery is scant for Americans in prime working years
By this measure, the jobs situation has improved little in recent years. The percentage of workers between the ages of 25 and 54 who have jobs now stands at 75.7 percent, just a percentage...
