“My RPM Story” – Shannon
Even though I’d spent 20 years in the Army, there was one challenge I hadn’t trained for: transitioning into civilian life. Then I found the perfect career path for a veteran — in residential property...
View ArticleA Conversation We'll Be Revisiting
Apartment Industry Advocates,Like so many people inside the Washington, D.C., beltway, I am eating my words from 11 months ago – “Donald Trump is not a serious candidate and there is no way he will get...
View ArticleGoing Postal
A few months ago I ordered $200 worth of business cards for a webseries I write on the side. To play it safe, I had them sent straight to my friend in New York, where I could pick them up when I...
View ArticleWhat Should I Do Differently?
A simple question from a student in a pool class turned into a fantastic discussion recently. The question that opened up the potentially view changing realization was: “My pool inspector is coming...
View ArticleOvertime Rule Shows President’s Power Without Congressional Action
Apartment Industry Advocates,
View ArticleHell's Kitchen
Picture someone who knows their way around both a grocery store and a kitchen. Someone who can pick out a handful of ingredients and turn them into something edible. An average adult, really. Are you...
View ArticleHill Yeah, San Francisco!
This is a safe space, so let’s all just admit what we’re thinking: Our legs are on FIRE today. Regardless of everyone’s political affiliation, we’re all feeling the burn. Those San Francisco hills are...
View ArticleFlowers In Your Hair & Inspiration to Take Home
San Francisco is the City By the Bay; consequently, my hair has become the One That Went Cray. Seriously, this place is no friend to us wavy and curly-headed folk. Apologies in advance for my...
View ArticleMy RPM Story – Mike Markus
When I began working in residential property management (RPM), I was mowing lawns. Now, as a maintenance director for BRG Realty Group, I oversee more than 7,000 apartment homes.Thanks to eight years...
View ArticleThe End of an Era of Oversharing
In 8th grade I quoted some very dramatic ‘Closing Time’ lyrics in a friend’s yearbook. Poignant stuff about every new beginning coming from some other beginning’s end—and, also, keep in touch and have...
View ArticleMaintenance Training: Feelings…
Were you at this year’s NAA Education Conference in San Francisco? (If you weren’t there I would highly recommend you consider venturing to the right side of the map in 2017.) During this year’s...
View ArticleActually, We Are Not a More Mobile Society
Anyone who regularly consumes Census data knows that mobility rates in this country have been declining for decades. So why do we keep hearing about roving Millennials, and the freedom to move as a...
View ArticleAn Incredible Year for Grassroots Advocacy
We’ve reached the mid-point of the second session of the 114th Congress, but in many ways it feels like the end of the session. Most of the heavy legislative lifting that can get done before the...
View ArticleUsing Due Diligence to Minimize Mistakes & MAXIMIZE Acquisition Value
Shrewd apartment owners understand that the greatest financial value in an apartment transaction can be had during the acquisition—not the exit.Industry veteran Ian Mattingly, President of LumaCorp in...
View ArticleSteady Growth in the U.S. Apartment Market
Moderation is the word across several apartment market metrics through the first half of 2016. According to MPF Research, annual rent growth slowed somewhat to 4.5%, compared to 4.9% at this time last...
View ArticleIncreased Housing Costs and Stagnant Incomes: A Double Whammy for Women
No one would deny that the lack of affordable housing in the United States is a serious problem. Housing affordability is all over the headlines, as is the gender pay gap, but when you couple them...
View ArticleIt’s a Zoo Out There
Did you know that a resident is entitled to ask for a reasonable accommodation request for any animal? While the most common requests involve dogs and cats, roosters, ferrets and boa constrictors are a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Overtime Rule Threatens Our Most Important Asset: Customer Service
Every day, my staff walks past a poster I hung over a decade ago. It says: “If You Don’t Take Care of the Customer, Someone Else Will.” For me, it’s not a cliché. It’s part of what I learned growing...
View ArticleNew EPA Regulations for Handling HFC's
The Environmental Protection Agency has updated the regulations that govern purchasing and handling refrigerant. This change can affect the way that we provide service to our residents during the hot...
View Article