As market conditions chan-ge, many leasing consultants are eager to use rent concessions and other incentives to entice people to rent at their communities. Yet even when there are few vacancies, it’s hard to break the habit of readily promoting a “bargain,” rather than the value received for the price. The following concern was recently brought to my attention by a property management company:

The Multifamily Applicant Risk Index (MAR Index) is published quarterly by First Advantage SafeRent and is now based exclusively on traffic credit quality scores from their statistical screening model (ScorePLUS®). This quarterly report provides property owners and managers in Portland-Salem with a benchmark with which to compare their portfolio’s performance. The first quarter national MAR Index, including studios, one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units, was 98.
Here is how Portland-Salem, OR-WA performed in the first quarter compared to last year:

Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) submitted a proposal for review to U.S. Treasury today that outlines its plan for disbursing $88 million in foreclosure assistance funds.
One of five states to receive second round Hardest Hit funds through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), Oregon received notice in late March that it will receive $88 million in foreclosure assistance funds because of its high rate of unemployment.

Q. New “smart meters” have been installed on some of my properties. What are they exactly and what do they mean for property managers and tenants?

A. Smart meters are the next-generation of electrical meters, and Portland General Electric is about 85 percent complete installing them throughout our service territory. When this process is completed, and the new meters’ full capabilities become operational, you and your tenants will like the features that these meters have to offer.

With an ever-changing applicant pool, you must make strategic adjustments to your screening criteria to ensure that you are renting to as many qualified applicants as possible. As 2010's rental season begins to take off, it's a good time for management companies to review their current acceptance criteria. First, you want to ensure that your screening criteria and corporate goals for 2010 are aligned, and that the former doesn't interfere with the latter. Next, you want to evaluate your existing screening criteria in the context of your current and future applicant pool.

Applicants will be required to comply with state & local LGBT anti-discrimination laws

For the first time in its history, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will require grant applicants seeking HUD funding to comply with state and local anti-discrimination laws that protect lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals. Recently, HUD published a notice detailing the general requirements that will apply to all of the Department's competitively awarded grant programs for Fiscal Year 2010.

A new online survey commissioned by the National Apartment Association conducted in May finds 76 percent of consumers deem renting to be the more favorable option to owning a home in the current real estate market, a 5 percent increase from 2008.
The survey also found that both renters and homeowners are not eager to make any changes in their housing status within the next year, demonstrating low consumer confidence and continued uncertainty in the housing market.

WASHINGTON, DC – The apartment market continues to rebound from the "Great Recession" according to NMHC's latest Quarterly Survey of Apartment Market Conditions.
Sales volume is up, debt and equity are more available and markets are tighter, according to respondents. For the first time since October 2005, all four survey indexes recorded better market conditions than three months ago. Indexes for both sales volume and equity financing registered all-time highs. The biggest improvement came in market tightness, which jumped from 38 to 81.