2020 NMHC Top 50 Managers

The 2020 NMHC Top 50 Managers list ranks the largest multifamily managers in the country by the number of units in their management portfolios in 2019. Greystar Real Estate Partners retains its first place position with 492,967 units under management, up from 451,180 in 2018. Lincoln Property Management holds second with 203,342 units in 2019, followed by Pinnacle at No. 3 with 169,002 units under management.

Austin, Texas-based Roscoe Property Management (RPM) enters the Top 50 Managers list this year at No. 42, with 38,035 multifamily units under management in 2019—a significant jump from 22,604 units in 2018. Over the past year, RPM has successfully integrated the Dallas-based B/K Multifamily Services portfolio into its operations, adding 50 new communities across the U.S. Overall, RPM added 65 new communities to its portfolio in 2019.

MFE spoke to Jason Berkowitz, founder and president of RPM, about the company’s expansion, operation strategies, and response to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

MFE: How have RPM’s 2019 successes contributed to its place on the top managers list this year?

Berkowitz: We are honored to be included in the Top 50 Managers list for 2020. However, our goal has never been growth, [but to] build an evergreen company focused on continued improvement and best practices. We have grown as a result of this focus, [and] our sustained growth has enabled us to attract top talent and promote team members from within our organization.

Companies like B/K Multifamily have observed our success and wanted to be a part of this collaboration. B/K is actually the third family-owned management company that RPM has partnered with in the last two years. These clients have found that the sophistication required in a property management platform today is best left to an organization like RPM. Then, they are free to maximize their investment and acquisition strategy with the knowledge that our platform can absorb their growth and maximize their property performance. We can both do what we do best.

MFE: What are your goals for 2020, and how have you achieved them so far this year?

Berkowitz: We started the year by promoting several individuals to senior leadership positions in management and technology to leverage and scale our hands-on approach.

• 2020 NMHC Top 50 Owners

  No. 5 Morgan Properties rises toward the top of the owners list thanks to a large portfolio acquisition in 2019.

  

• 2020 NMHC Top 50 Managers

  No. 42 Roscoe Property Management grows its national presence.

  

• 2020 NMHC Top 25 Developers

  No. 7 The NRP Group continues to see accelerated growth, in its focus on affordable housing.

  

• 2020 NMHC Top 25 Builders

  New to the list this year, No. 5 Katerra brings technology to every part of the building process.

  

• 2020 NMHC Top 10 Syndicators

  No. 3 National Equity Fund looks toward geographic expansion.

  

We have also added to our regional manager team with additional experienced individuals. We have a unique approach with regional managers having no more than five assets in their portfolio, in order to keep a very close and proactive supervisory team. We will also fill two new senior positions in the next 60 days. I think it is vital to have both internal talent and external talent to remain fresh and innovative.

We have already accomplished several of our other 2020 strategic initiatives in business intelligence, training—our training program was recently named one of the top 125 in the nation in all industry types—and digital marketing. We are currently working on several more partnership opportunities as well.

MFE: How has RPM reacted and responded to the COVID-19 crisis?

Berkowitz: Our executive team started planning for remote and reduced operations five weeks before any stay-in-place orders were issued in our markets. We developed a plan for on-site teams to “job share” and work in shifts to minimize risk to other team members and residents, and began communicating with our residents daily regarding modified operations and maintenance at the apartment communities. We initiated proactive client communications simultaneously, informing them of the steps we were taking to help keep our teams safe, maximize resident services and rental collections, and minimize operating costs. Our regional vice presidents and regional managers have maintained daily communication with ownership, evaluating all alternatives to minimize disruption to the property operating plan.

MFE: What do you anticipate the near future will hold for the company? How do you anticipate rising to the challenges ahead, related to COVID-19 or otherwise?

Berkowitz: RPM will continue to rapidly expand, not only in number of units but into new markets across the country. We are in an environment where the expectations from our clients, residents, and employees have never been higher. We will continue to lean on advancements in technology to continue to achieve the best results possible. We will never lose sight of the value of the RPM team, and for that reason we will continue to invest in them and grow them as we grow as a company.