One of the most common questions I receive is:"If the market cap rate is 6% and I find a property trading at an 8% cap rate, have I found a great deal?"The answer is maybe. A cap rate alone never tells the entire story.A cap rate spread is the difference between the market cap rate and the property's cap rate.Example:* Market Cap Rate: 6%* Subject Property: 8%* Spread: 2%At first glance, an 8% cap rate in a 6% market appears attractive. The real ...

When property management professionals hear the word "accessibility," they often think about the physical features of a community. They picture accessible parking spaces, curb cuts, ramps, elevators, wider doorways, grab bars, and other features that help people with disabilities navigate a property.While those physical elements are important, accessibility does not begin at the front entrance of an apartment community. For many prospective resid ...

Your online presence; website, Instagram posts, TikTok reels, Stories, Highlights, is the prospects first tour.It sets the tone, the expectations, and the standard for what prospects believe they'll experience onsite.And here's the rule every property should adopt: If we wouldn't proudly post it online, we shouldn't be showing it in person.That applies to: Office appearance Greeting at the door Property appearance Conversations Energy Profession ...

If you've worked in multifamily for more than a week, you've probably been yelled at by a resident.Maybe it was over a delayed work order. Maybe it was a rent increase. Maybe it was something completely outside of your control.One of the biggest leadership lessons I've learned in this industry is that the most effective property management professionals don't take those moments personally—they listen first.T ...

Naming gets all the attention. The workshop, the shortlist, the debate over the finalists, the reveal. It feels like the moment the brand is born.It is not. A name is raw material. What determines whether it means anything is the work that comes after it, and that work gets far less attention than it deserves.Think about what a name is on day one. A word on a sign. A promise that has not been kept yet. If the name is ambitious, something evocativ ...

Mergers, centralization, technology stacking on top of more technology, and the people in the middle of it all trying to figure out how to keep showing up well for their teams.I've been thinking a lot about what we're actually asking of our leaders right now.Accenture's 2024 Pulse of Change Index found that the rate of change increased 183% over the past four years. 33% in 2023 alone. And multifamily didn't get a pass on any of it. We've got oper ...

What NYC's Broker-Fee Law Can Teach Landlords EverywhereBy Aleksei ApasovIf you own or manage rental property outside New York, it's easy to assume the city's broker-fee law has nothing to do with you. I think that's a mistake.Real estate policies have a habit of spreading. What starts in one major market often becomes a model—or at least a talking point—for lawmakers elsewhere. New York just happened to go first, and that makes it an interesting ...

 Every broker I know—including myself—is constantly chasing the next lead source. Whether it's a new CRM, another advertising platform, or the latest AI tool promising to fill our pipeline overnight, we're always looking for the next competitive edge.Meanwhile, the most valuable asset most brokerage owners already have is sitting right in front of them—and many aren't using it.I'm talking about your email list.I speak with brokerage owners a ...