Table of Contents November 2007

FEATURES

• Human Resources: NMHC Compensation Survey

  Negotiations be darned: When you look at the bottom line, it's almost impossible to put a fair price on reliability and human results in the workforce. But recruiting, retaining, and rewarding top talent at all levels of an organization is crucial to ensuring its long-term success—and even moderate...

   

FROM THE EDITOR

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  Taking a Gamble: CityCenter Las Vegas

  I have become disillusioned by Las Vegas. While some love to revisit the 24/7 city, these days, I much prefer to be at home with a good book. Yes, there are great shows and restaurants, but there's also a limit to the amount of over-stimulation a person can take in a single visit.

   

NEWS + NUMBERS

Stat of the Month

• Slight Stumble: Confidence Index Drops

  The shadow market of excess for-sale inventory strikes again. This time, builder confidence took the hit. In September, the National Association of Home Builders released its quarterly Multifamily Rental Market Index, which said that confidence dipped across product lines in the second quarter of...

   

Direct Reports

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  Getting Schooled: High-Density Development

  A Rutgers University study debunks the popular myth that high-density developments burden local school systems. The study, based on 2000 Census data, presents averages of the number of people, school-age children, and public school children that live in different types of communities. The study...

   

• Lake House: Waukegan Redevelopment

  Waukegan, Ill., is saying goodbye to manufacturing and hello to lakefront living. The small town north of Chicago wants to capitalize on its greatest asset—Lake Michigan—and transform the industrial lakefront area into a vibrant mix of residential, retail, and recreational offerings. But there are...

   
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  News Bites: November

   

• Through the Roof: Workforce Rental Housing

  Homeowners aren't the only ones facing a major housing crunch. Nationally, the number of working families paying more than half their income for rental housing (both multifamily and single-family) more than doubled from 1 million to 2.1 million between 1997 and 2005, according to

   
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  Back in the Saddle: Steady Cap Rates

  The condo boom? Busted. The credit crisis? Overblown. As real estate markets continue to adjust to recessionary conditions in the for-sale arena, business in multifamily rental properties is finally getting back to normal. Acquiring land is suddenly competitive again; due diligence periods are...

   

Regional

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  Life in the Fast Lane: Indianapolis Mulitfamily Market

  It's a timeworn truism: Different markets see vast improvement at different times. For Indianapolis, that time is now. After watching its Midwest neighbors, especially Chicago, see tremendous fundamental growth and market tightening over the past 12 to 18 months, the Indianapolis apartment market...

   

SALES + SOLUTIONS

New Developments

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  Dream Builder: The Centurion

  For two Manhattan-based developers, The Centurion condominium project has been a waking dream. Their ardor stems from convincing legendary architect I.M. Pei and his son L.C. (Sandi) Pei to design it as their first ground-up, residential condominium building.

   

Done Deal

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  New Ground: Apartment Construction Loans

  For the past several years, all development plans have been indefinitely on hold for Gainesville, Fla.-based Collier Enterprises and Paradigm Properties, a developer of B-plus, garden-style apartments and student housing across Florida, Georgia, and Oklahoma. Until 2007, most of Collier's customers...

   

Tech Specs

• The Final Frontier: Electronic Signatures

  When it comes to online lease-ups, multifamily companies have always taken their fair share of knocks for failing to deliver a seamless point-and-click experience for prospective residents and property managers alike. But the industry is done dipping its toes in the waters and has leapt into...

   

PRODUCT STUDIO

• Q & A with Kipling Sheppard

   
• 

  Hot Product of the Month: Thermique Towel Warmer

  Thermique Technologies' towel warmer is the ultimate bathroom luxury item.

   
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  Outside In: Building Envelopes

  The building envelope—the complex framework of materials that serves as the exterior and interior walls—is arguably the most important part of a structure. If the envelope is engineered and constructed properly, it will have a “tight” building envelope—one that is structurally sound, fire-resistant...

   

• Product Studio: Building Envelopes

   

MFE AWARDS

• Thinking Smart: 2007 MFE Awards

  Through smart planning and design, this year's winners created livable, pedestrian-friendly communities certain to gain kudos from New Urbanism advocates everywhere. The projects—from a tight urban infill spot in the heart of a redeveloping downtown to an outlying multi-acre blighted site—bring the...

   

• 2007 MULTIFAMILY EXECUTIVE Award Winners

   

High-Rise

• Hartford 21

   

• M Street

   

• Viridian

   

Mid-Rise

• Element

   

• Harbor Square

   

Low-Rise

• 36Sixty

   

• Avalon Del Rey

   

Senior

• The Apartments at 1251 S. Michigan

   

Student

• Charles Commons—Johns Hopkins University

   

Military

• Ohana Military Communities

   

• Lewis Village

   

Affordable

• Martin Luther King Plaza

   

• Delmas Park

   

• Dorado Senior Apartments

   

Mixed-Income

• Avenue 26 Master Plan

   

Apartment Renovation

• Legacy at Mayland

   

• Madison Park

   

• One Thousand 8th Avenue

   

Adaptive Reuse

• The Crane Building

   

• Curley School Artisan Lofts

   

• Carleton Place Lofts

   

Best Reuse of Land

• Icon

   

• Avenue 26 Master Plan

   

Green

• Silverado Flats

  The 12-unit Silverado Flats, tucked on a quiet cul de sac just 2 miles from the University of Arizona campus, is a brilliant example of how to go green in style. Sure, the sustainable elements offer essential energy and water savings. But the carefully designed green features also serve as focal...

   

Marketing and Advertising

• The New Sequoia Equities

   

• Sky55

   

Community Service

• 2007 National Gables Day

   

• Kids@Home

   

Technology

• Springs Experience

   

• Camden Property Trust Resident Retention Program