The recession is over! How do we get back to Fundamentals? by Emily Goodman via Multifamily Insiders

BankUnited executive Patrick Fitzgerald told a real estate lending conference in April that multifamily housing "is in a full-fledged healing mode." Vacancies are hovering at 6.6 percent nationally, down from 8.1 percent a year ago, and rents rose in the last three months of 2010 for the third consecutive quarter.

This is phenomenal news for those of us that have been operating in a cash flow challenged; concession drenched multifamily market for the past 4 years. The challenge now is that we unsure about how we get back to the basics of selling apartments at market rate. For the past 4 years we have been focusing on selling prospective renters what “they will get free” as opposed to the fundamentals of great location, great amenities and fantastic customer service. A culture of concessions has changed the way we market and sell apartments and the posturing question now is how we go back to “normal”.

What increases this challenge even further is that many of those working in the multifamily industry are of the millennial generation and have only known this “recession culture”. The challenge and goal is teaching these folks how approach, product quality, successful habits and drive for distinction can lease more apartments instead of concessions. The economy has turned and rents are going up. The goals of modern day post-recession leasing teams are driving the market, raising rents, growing revenue, maximizing marketing dollars and creating a positive financial impact on every property they manage.

Read more...The recession is over! How do we get back to Fundamentals? by Emily Goodman via Multifamily Insiders