Tag: multifamily

Apartment Loan Rate Stays Below 5% For 10th Week

The apartment investment loan we tract (see below for details) clocked in at 4.861% this week making it the 10th week in a row below 5%. Meanwhile the spread between it and the benchmark 10 year Treasury (T10) held in the 210 -220 basis point range over the last six weeks.  The T10 itself had been in the 2.7% range over the last month but dipped to 2.65% this week:

Apartment Building Investment Loan Rate vs Ten Year Treasury Rate April 2014

Speaking of the spread between the T10 and the ten year apartment loan rate, now that Continue reading Apartment Loan Rate Stays Below 5% For 10th Week

Apartment Building Financing Outlook for 2014

Apartment building investment loans in 2014,  thoughts and predictions on what’s in store from lenders large and small and the organizations who represent them:

Greystone via MultiHousingNews: We do think there will be more capital available,” says Bob Barolak, co-COO at Greystone. Lenders will become even more eager to make loans in the multifamily space, he says, because of greater confidence in the economy and markets.

Another major reason for an expected bump in capital available in the next 12 months is that CMBS financing has come back into the multifamily sector—from a volume of practically zero in 2012. They will continue to increase market share significantly in 2014.” Currently, CMBS multifamily financings are carrying interest rates of about 5.10 to 5.20 percent, or about 10 to 15 basis points lower than rates in Fannie Mae transactions, according to Barolak.

Maximum LTVs on CMBS loans—up to 75 percent on 10-year terms for multifamily properties—have also become competitive with those of Fannie and Freddie loans. Moreover, CMBS lenders can become “extremely aggressive” for deals they want to acquire to round up a securitization pool, Barolak says. In such instances, “they can dramatically lower the interest rate significantly below what Fannie and Freddie will offer.”

Life insurance companies are another Continue reading Apartment Building Financing Outlook for 2014

How much to budget for apartment building Capital Expenses? Many smaller properties spend up to 2x more

Mike Scott of apartment research firm Dupre+Scott has some shocking news for apartment building investors. While most lenders require a minimum reserve of $250 per unit per year for capital expenses and many owners reserve up to 400, according to actual expense budgets Mike tracked for properties in the Seattle area actual capital expenses have been averaging $750 a year for the last dozen years and the trend is definitely up:

Apartment Building Capital Expense Budgets vs Actual

These are actual CapEx expenses from actual properties and while they definitely vary from market to market, the cognitive error is probably about the same everywhere. Some investors may say well we only buy newer properties so that we don’t have CapEx to worry about. Unfortunately their research shows that even Continue reading How much to budget for apartment building Capital Expenses? Many smaller properties spend up to 2x more

Top US Cities for Job and Apartment Building Investment Revenue Growth Charted. Axiometrics via MFE Mag

MFE Apartment Trends posted an Axiometrics chart of the top US cities for job growth and apartment revenue growth for 2013:

Apartment Building Investment Revenue and Job Growth 2013 Continue reading Top US Cities for Job and Apartment Building Investment Revenue Growth Charted. Axiometrics via MFE Mag

The 10 Commandments of Network Building by Duke Long

Duke is one of the top thought leaders on how commercial real estate (CRE) and online social networking should work together… and where they don’t. HE posted this on his blog 10 Real World Examples of How I Built My Commercial Real Estate Network and in an ironically karmic sort of way I just saw it on Klout’s homepage today. It is so good and to the point in true Duke style that it would be a great guest post. I believe these steps work online and off, in CRE or any other industry so take it away Duke:

Duke Long commercial real estate investments

1.What are the relevant commercial real estate communities of interest?  What are the needs wants of the participants within these communities?

I started simply looking for the groups and associations that I already had and affiliation with. My state commercial board.  NAR because I had already made several connections over the years. CCIM,SIOR,IREM,BOMA etc. Why connect? Hell, why go to the meetings and get on the conference calls, why volunteer? I needed build and cultivate a network. Online connection was a revelation. I would listen learn and ask simple questions. The needs and wants were pretty obvious.People wanted to connect to make deals. But then something interesting started to happen.Human interaction.

2.Participate where your presence is advantageous and mandatory, don’t just participate anywhere and everywhere or solely in your own domains (Facebook,LinkedIN, Twitter conversations related to your brand, etc.)

Seems pretty obvious does it not? Let me give you and example. I do everything in my power to eliminate and and all feeds emails discussions and spam from lenders. You say What? We need that lender connection. Not me. All and I mean all they do is spam and pitch. How does this help me or my clients. You would think lenders pitching brokers is a natural fit. Wrong. Go find the client before they get to me and leave me the hell alone. The “we only are taking clients in the 30-75 mil bracket ” pitch is total bullshit. So, your are in commercial real estate who and where should you be ? Start-ups, Logistics Companies, Medical Associations,Industrial Data Centers…let your brain flow.Maybe some other brokers also they need to know what your stuff is but not in a spammy way!

3. Determine the identity, character, and personality of your Continue reading The 10 Commandments of Network Building by Duke Long

What drives changes in operating expenses (OPEX) for CRE and Multifamily? Nice research from CBRE Econometric Advisors

As every landlord knows, operating expenses (OPEX) are an important element of commercial real estate investment performance. In spite of the important role OPEX plays in investment performance, there is very little research that analyzes the structure of these costs or identifies what drives the differences in these costs across markets. This article aims to share the latest findings on the drivers and structure of OPEX.

… That industrial variable costs have a lower elasticity than those of the other property types accords with what investors in this asset class generally experience: that these properties are usually cheaper to operate. A perhaps more surprising finding is that the elasticity coefficients for office, multifamily, and retail—property types with significantly different operating structures—are fairly similar to one another. We are conducting further research to better understand this finding.

See the whole piece here: What Drives Operating Costs in Commercial Real Estate?

Getting Inside the Head of Today’s Online Renter, multifamily report now available.

apartment building investmentFrom my friend Heather over at Behind The Leasing Desk Consulting: “fact: I ♥ Satisfacts! Check out their new report on the mind of the online renter for some great insight into what your potential residents are thinking.”

From Satisfacts: “We asked, and now it’s ready for YOU. Getting Inside the Head of Today’s Online Renter is the most comprehensive analysis ever conducted in the industry on the impact of technology and social media on apartment marketing and operations.” Get the report here

 

Where is your apartment market in the cycle? Latest Multifamily Market Cycle Charts now posted via Glenn Mueller, PhD.

See the details and charts for the other CRE sectors here:

FHA Makes Strides on Speeding Up Its Multifamily Tax Credit Loan Process.

[The FHA] is ushering in the long-awaited Tax Credit Pilot Program, mandated by the 2008 Housing and Economic Recovery Act.

The pilot program aims to drastically speed up the processing time of FHA-backed deals that use low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs). In the past, LIHTC developers had difficulty using the FHA—the LIHTC program carries strict deadlines, and affordable housing owners and developers just couldn’t wait around for the FHA’s notoriously slow turnaround times.

This new program aims to fix all that. “Expediting our delivery system is a big agenda for us,” says Head. “And it’s one of my biggest priorities.” See the whole MFE Mag article here: FHA Makes Strides on Speeding Up Its Tax Credit Process