Greater Investor Optimism in Retail, Especially for National Regional Malls; Technology Office Markets and Warehouse Sector Showed Steepest Cap Rate Declines in Q4

As 2012 drew to a close and the industry's recovery progresses, commercial real estate offered varied investment opportunities across each major sector and a diverse number of cities, even though macroeconomic uncertainties still exist, such as the fiscal cliff, according to the fourth quarter 2012 findings of the PwC Real Estate Investor Survey.

The cost to insure apartments increased by 9.5 percent between 2011 and 2012, marking the second consecutive year of rising insurance expenditures according to the National Multi Housing Council’s (NMHC) Apartment Cost of Risk Survey (ACORS). The survey covers data from more than one million apartment units, the largest number of units covered by the survey to date, operated by 55 apartment firms, tracking three principal components of insurance premiums: property, general liability and workers’ compensation.

3Q12 Payroll Trends and Forecast
In spite of a weak September print, Portland payrolls increased at a 17,000-job, 1.7% annual rate during the third quarter, up from 2Q’s 15,100-job, 1.5% performance. Slower hiring in the nonprofessional components of the business services sector and the education, health care and hospitality services sectors was primarily responsible for the soft September report. Employment in the foregoing sectors declined -700 jobs year-on year, down from a 6,000-job advance in June.

Every landlord, from time to time, rents an apartment or home to roommates. The roommates may consist of all female or all male occupants, or may be a mix of females and males. This article will try to address some of the more problematic situations with roommates.

Apartment firms are reminded that a number of significant tax increases impacting the industry, which were enacted in 2010 as part of health care reform legislation, are scheduled to take effect beginning in 2013. Two of the most important changes, which affect both apartment firms and employees, concern the Medicare tax rate and applicability.

Recruiters are the ones out there on the front lines of the workforce, trying to bring talent into organizations; there are a lot of qualified people out there from a credential standpoint. Fit is where the true challenge lies. Will this person fit our organization? There are many meanings to that. Does the person look and feel to others like they belong here?

This past December, the Governor’s Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) Task Force unanimously approved ten recommendations for simplifying Arizona’s complex taxing system. These recommendations were included in a Final Report issued to the Governor, the Senate President and the Speaker of the House.
Included in the Final Report was the recommendation to transition the state away from the current prime contracting tax system and towards a system that taxes materials at the point of sale.

The Phoenix metro area in third quarter 2012 recorded its lowest apartment vacancy rate since third quarter 2006. Third quarter 2012 also saw the planning and zoning pipeline of new apartment development increase fivefold since third quarter 2010 and continued declines in concession offerings compared to one year ago. Third quarter 2012 marks the first time in six quarters in which asking rents were higher than those observed in the same period of the prior year.

RENTS

The latest reading of the S&P Case-Shiller index shows home prices in 20 major US cities increased 5.5% year over year in November.  This marks the biggest jump since August 2006. 19 of the 20 cities showed an increase, with New York’s modest decline being the only blemish.  Phoenix posted the largest year over year increase at 22.8%

Published in conjunction with Utah Apartment Association, The Landlord Times - Utah is the journal for the multifamily and rental housing industry in Utah. News, trends and information for apartment owners, real estate investors and property managers.

The Landlord Times - Colorado is a leading source for news, trends and information for the multifamily and rental housing industry in Colorado.

According to a recent survey of leading economist done by CNNMoney, the housing recovery is expected to be the number one driver of economic growth this year.

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Published in conjunction with MultifamilyNW (formerly Metro Multifamily Housing Association), IREM, Clark County Rental Association and Rental Housing Association of Greater Portland, The Landlord Times Metro edition is the journal for the multifamily, rental housing and property management industry in the Portland Metro area.

Portland, Oregon: At a recent strategic planning meeting the Board of Directors of Metro Multifamily Housing Association revealed the approved name change to Multifamily NW. This name change better reflects the current and future membership and work of the association.

The new name was chosen to retain the associations brand equity while more broadly representing the industry's varied and changing business climate.

The Landlord Times On-Site edition is the monthly journal for property managers, apartment owners, independent rental owners and other real estate professionals. On-Site is published in conjunction with Washington Multifamily Housing Association, Washington Apartment Association and IREM.

Selling Velocity Flattens as Inventory Reaches its Lowest Level in 22 Months

SEATTLE, Jan. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Technology-powered real estate broker Redfin today released its Real-Time Home Price Tracker for December 2012, showing home prices increasing 11.3 percent year over year while dropping just 0.4 percent from November to December across 19 major U.S. markets. Inventory plummeted 33 percent year over year, its largest drop in 2012.

NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- There are many methods for acquiring wealth available across the globe today. One of the most easily accessible ways even for the new investor is real estate investing. Many people have made millions of dollars by investing in the real estate market in one form or another.

Here are few tips on how to increase the number of reviews you receive on Yelp and Google Places. These are very easy to use tips that can greatly improve the number of reviews.

Why is this goal of increasing your online reviews so
important?

Over the past 15 years our property managers at Pacific Crest have seen property management at its finest, and at its ultimate worst. This month I had the opportunity to interview one of our most experienced property managers, Diane Brush, on the array of hoarding extravaganzas she has witnessed over the years. After my short interview I had quite the selection of significant hoarding stories to share with readers.