Preventative Medicine
The National Multi Housing Council recently released a white paper outlining steps apartment firms can take to prepare for a possible pandemic flu outbreak. The paper includes an update on the status of the avian flu, info on how to develop an emergency preparedness program, and a resource guide with links to crisis communications and more. The members-only document is available at www.nmhc.org.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Rate Rent
The Vancouver [Wash.] Housing Authority is moving away from calculating rent subsidies by income to a new flat-rate system. Under the new program, families will get flat subsidies based on unit size or family size. VHA implemented the program to encourage family members to pursue paid employment (residents will receive the same subsidy regardless of other income) and to help the agency itself more accurately predict its future expenses, according to David Overbay, federal program manager for the housing authority. With HUD approval, the program will launch Jan. 1, 2007.
–Les Shaver
News Flash
Apartments are going prime time. NBC-owned and operated TV stations have teamed with apartment listing service ApartmenTime.com to showcase available apartments to its online viewers. For maximum exposure, property owners and managers can combine their online marketing efforts with NBC-affiliated broadcast and outdoor ad campaigns.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Head of the Class
Do you work for a multifamily company that you think stands above the rest? If so, tell us about it for an upcoming story in our January issue. Send an e-mail to Les Shaver at lshaver@hanleywood.com.
Healthier Market
The apartment market is just getting better and better. According to the National Multi Housing Council’s most recent quarterly survey of apartment market conditions, 75 percent of respondents reported tighter conditions than the previous three months measured by lower vacancy rates, higher rents, or both. The overall market tightness index reached 85, which is the second-highest number on record (a reading of 50 or higher means the market is improving). The index has now been at 80 or above for five consecutive quarters.
–Les Shaver
Brad Goes Green
Green building just got even trendier. Brad Pitt joined forces with the national environmental organization Global Green USA to bring green housing to New Orleans via a sustainable design architectural competition. The winning design: GREEN.O.LA, which includes a 12-unit building and will be built in the Holy Cross neighborhood of the 9th Ward. The contest drew 3,000 registrants from all over the world, and the public chose the winner among six finalists. But which one did Angelina Jolie vote for?
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Land Brawl
Ohio projects are halted.
In a major rebuke to last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision supporting the broad use of eminent domain, Kelo v. City of New London, the Ohio Supreme Court recently ruled that cities cannot seize private properties for economic development.
The ruling in Norwood v. Horney halted plans for a major mixed-use complex in Norwood, Ohio. “More than anything, this decision serves as an important indicator as to how state courts will react to the issue,” says Paula Cino, a senior legislative analyst for NMHC in Washington, D.C.
In the year since Kelo, more than 5,700 homes, businesses, and churches were threatened with seizure for private development, and at least 350 were either condemned or authorized for condemnation, according to the nonprofit Arlington, Va.-based Institute for Justice, a libertarian public interest firm. Only 10,000 were similarly threatened or taken over from 1998 to 2002.
And states are at the forefront of the battle. Since Kelo, nearly 30 state legislatures have passed reforms giving greater protection to property owners. But much of the legislation is a knee-jerk reaction to Kelo and is hastily crafted, argues Cino. “We are looking for much more certain definitions and clarity in the statutes that are coming down the pipe, because the uncertainty in the planning process could stymie development efforts even where the project would ultimately pass constitutional muster,” says Cino.
–Rachel Z. Azoff