Archive for the ‘Student Housing’ Category
Wednesday, July 14th, 2010
By 2050 - just 40 years from now — nearly 16 million Americans will be afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease. Surprisingly, there is not yet a national plan to deal with this looming crisis, although one has been proposed on Capitol Hill. The National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA) would establish an inter-agency advisory council to address the government’s efforts on Alzheimer’s research, care, institutional services, and home- and community-based programs. S.B. 3036 and H.R. 4689 would create a government agency to exclusively deal with Alzheimer’s issues.
Co-sponsored by Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO), Birch Bayh (D-IN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Jon Tester (D-MT), the proposal would create a special office within the White House to coordinate research, clinical care and services with the goal of preventing, caring for and curing Alzheimer’s Disease.
“Alzheimer’s takes a tremendous emotional and financial toll on over 75,000 Coloradans and their families,” according to Bennet. “Yet our nation’s healthcare system is not set up to appropriately coordinate and share the research we’re doing to prevent, cure and care for our patients. This bill will streamline the country’s research efforts so that we can better find ways to combat this disease while also making much better use of our taxpayer dollars.”
Approximately half of Americans who live to 85 will suffer from Alzheimer’s. Once the legislation is passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate, the Office of the National Alzheimer’s director would be named to the Domestic Policy Council and the Office of Science and Technology. This director would have input into all policy aspects of the disease, as well as focus on high-risk groups and those underserved by existing Alzheimer’s programs.
Tags: Alzheimer's, Capitol Hill, congress, Domestic Policy Council, house of representatives, Senate
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Tuesday, July 6th, 2010
As global financial disparities start to wind down, China is likely to end up a winner because emerging-market economies have a definite advantage rooted in the way the global economy functions. Writing in the McKinsey Quarterly, Lowell Bryan, a director with McKinsey & Company, notes that “Saber-rattling Western trade negotiators frequently focus their attention on the ‘unnaturally’ depressed exchange rate of countries such as China, and this is a component of the structural advantage to which I refer. But its roots run far deeper - all the way down to the fundamental issue that labor can’t be freely traded on a single global market, while capital and commodities can. Any company sourcing its production or service operations in a lower-wage emerging market-country therefore can save enormously on labor costs.”
China’s recent decision to relax the informal peg of its currency, the yuan, to the U.S. dollar proves that the world must come to grips with a set of economic relationships that are currently unsustainable. According to Lowell, “Their unwinding will have serious long-term implications for those executives’ strategic priorities, including where they locate operations and what customers they serve in which markets. Equally important is the need for preparedness in case the unwinding process is sudden and abrupt. While we surely seem to be headed toward a new global equilibrium, the transition to that future may not be smooth and gradual.”
The cost of labor in China and India is less than one-third of what it is in developed nations. Additionally, Chinese and Indian productivity are at extremely high levels and tend to be in highly specialized fields - high-tech assembly in China and software development in India. To take advantage of the cost savings, many multinational firms are locating production facilities in emerging markets.
Tags: China, emerging markets, globalization, Lowell Bryan, McKinsey Quarterly, outsourcing, US dollar, Yuan
Posted in Economics, General, Student Housing | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 8th, 2010
If you’ve noticed a recent drop in mortgage interest rates, thank the PIGS’ (Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain) troubles, which are causing jitters in the globe’s equity markets. Seeking a safe haven, investors are putting their money into U.S. Treasury notes. Because mortgage interest rates tend to rise and fall with 10-year U.S. Treasury note yields, this translates to good news for people contemplating a home purchase. Freddie Mac noted that the typical 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.78 percent recently, down from 4.84 percent just a week earlier. The record low of 4.71 percent occurred in 2009.
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, homeowners are refinancing at a rate not seen since last fall.
Tags: Freddie Mac, Greece, Italy, Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage interest rates, PIGS, Portugal, Spain, US Treasuries
Posted in Economics, Financing, General, Residential, Student Housing | No Comments »
Thursday, May 6th, 2010
A 43-story residential tower in south London’s Elephant & Castle neighborhood will receive eight percent of its power from three wind turbines installed at the top of the structure. The Strata Tower - nicknamed the Electric Razor - is being developed by Brookfield Europe and eventually will be home to 1,000 residents.
The Strata is a £13 million milestone in the £1.5 billion project to revitalize the Elephant and Castle area. The Strata’s 408 studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments range from £230,000 to £2.5 million, with the first residents expected to move in this summer. As well as generating an estimated 50MWh annually, the turbines will earn approximately £16,000-£17,000 per year through the British government’s new feed-in-tariff, a payment per kilowatt-hour for electricity generated by a renewable resource.
Each turbine has 15 blades with a 9m-diameter rotor plane. The wind turbines - which will meet energy demand for 33 two-bedroom apartments - were chosen because they had the best potential, given the building’s height and shape. Although other buildings have wind turbines mounted on their roofs, the Strata Tower is the first to incorporate them into the original design.
Tags: Brookfield Europe, Electirc Razor, Elephant & Castle, Feed-in-tariff, London, southwark, Strata Tower, wind turbines
Posted in Development, Economics, General, Green, Healthcare, Industrial, Residential, Student Housing | No Comments »
Thursday, April 22nd, 2010
One-fourth of American workers have saved less than $1,000 for their retirement, according to a report from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). The EBRI survey reveals that 27 percent reported saving less than $1,000 for retirement, not counting the value of their home or defined-benefit plans. A similar percentage reported saving between $1,000 and $24,999 for retirement. An additional 23 percent had saved between $25,000 and $99,999; just 11 percent saved more than $250,000.
Younger employees have time to build their nest eggs, but the 11 percent may be the only group who have saved adequately to live out their retirement in comfort. The last three years has seen a sharp decline in the percentage of people who said they were “very confident” about their financial security in retirement. That statistic fell to 16 percent compared with the 27 percent reported in 2007. In the survey, 38 percent said they are somewhat assured they will be able to live comfortably after retirement. Less than 50 percent expressed concern about their readiness for retirement.
Even with the lack of personal savings, the survey found that the majority of respondents planned to rely on retirement income from sources like Social Security or company pensions. The increase in 401 (k) programs and decline in defined-benefit plans assures that more people will have to rely on their own savings to see them through retirement.
Two-thirds of survey respondents reported that they felt they were doing a good job of preparing for retirement, while two thirds were very or somewhat confident of their efforts.
Tags: 401k, financial security, long-term care, pensions, retirement, savings rate, social security
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Monday, April 5th, 2010
The Obama administration has announced a new initiative to assist troubled homeowners by helping them refinance with government-backed mortgages that cut monthly payments. The program would also temporarily reduce payments for unemployed borrowers who are actively job hunting. The government is encouraging lenders to write down the value of loans for borrowers participating in modification programs. Officials expect this and other in-place federal programs to help between three and four million distressed homeowners over the next several years. A Treasury Department statement said the initiatives are designed to “balance the need to help responsible homeowners struggling to stay in their homes, with the recognition that we cannot and should not help everyone.”
The thrust of the new initiative, which likely will cause some controversy, is that the government - through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) - will help owners who are underwater or owe more than their house is worth to refinance. Estimates are that 11 million households or 20 percent of all mortgage-holders, are underwater. Many of these homeowners refinanced during the housing boom and took cash, putting them at risk when prices fell. The homeowners will have to eat some of their losses, but will be in better shape than families who had no option but foreclosure. By insuring the new loan against the risk of default, the FHA gives the borrower a good reason to make payments instead of abandoning the house.
The program’s success depends on investors’ eagerness to participate. Over the last three years, the FHA has expanded its mortgage guarantee program to help homeowners cope with the housing crisis. Today, the FHA guarantees more than six million borrowers, many of whom made small downpayments and currently are underwater. Approximately $14 billion in TARP funds will fund the project.
Tags: congress, Department of the Treasury, distressed homeowners, Federal Housing Administration, foreclosure, mortage modifications, Office of Thrift Supervision, President Barack Obama, TARP, underwater mortgages
Posted in Economics, Financing, General, Residential, Student Housing | No Comments »
Monday, February 8th, 2010
Olgga Architects took an inventive approach to creating student housing in Le Havre, France, by building a 100-unit complex using recycled shipping containers. The result is stylish student housing that is portable, affordable, durable and eco-friendly.
Called the “Crou”, the 2,841-meter (30,700 SF) pyramidal structure stacks the shipping containers on top of each other. The complex has individual rooms for students with areas for living, studying and sleeping. Another plus is that the Crou puts surplus containers to use instead of letting them rust in a landfill.
Tags: Crou, Olgga Architects, shipping containers, sublease
Posted in Development, Student Housing | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
The commercial bond market may be opening up slightly as Bank of America (BofA) prepares to sell $460 million worth of bonds collateralized by properties owned by Fortress Investment Group. The bonds that BofA is arranging are ineligible for TALF, another positive sign that the commercial mortgage market might finally be showing signs of improvement.
The transaction involves 44 properties, primarily Florida office and industrial buildings, with bonds rated in the AAA to BBB range. Price ranges were not available. This deal and the recent $400 million sale of shopping malls owned by Ohio-based Developers Diversified Realty represent the initial offeerings since securitization of real estate loans came to a halt in the middle of 2008. Investors should be wary against being overly optimistic about these sales since commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) are unlikely to be as significant a financing vehicle in the future. Although financing is opening up for specific new issues, investors have little appetite to refinance the trillions of dollars of risky commercial loans that are coming due over the next few years.
“It is another baby step,” said Thomas Zatko, managing director at Babson Capital Management.
According to an index compiled by Moody’s Investors Service, commercial real estate prices have slid 43 percent from their peak in October of 2007.
Tags: Babson Capital Management, Bank of America, CMBS, Freddie Mac, Troubled Assets Relief Program
Posted in Economics, Financing, Healthcare, Office, Residential, Student Housing | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
Because the United States is producing an increasing number of high school graduates who go on to attend college, student housing apparently is recession-proof real estate. This is the finding of a recently released report from the National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) that studied the recession’s impact on college enrollment and on-campus dormitory vacancy rates.
According to Jim Arbury, NMHC’s senior vice president, the study - entitled “Special Student Housing Report: Has the Recession Had an Impact?” - examined freshman application data for 63 universities and compares 2009 levels to 2008, as well as to statistics from 2003.
“This report offers valuable benchmarks on the toll the economy is taking on universities, and, by extension, current demand for student housing,” Arbury said. “And it provides vital enrollment data a full six weeks or more before the universities release their numbers. Our research indicates that applications and enrollments are up at most universities. The only places we generally find declining or flat enrollments are in states where the higher education budget has been dramatically reduced or where the university itself is geographically constrained from any further growth.”
Tags: college enrollment, National Multi Housing Council, recession, Student Housing
Posted in Development, Student Housing | No Comments »
Wednesday, July 15th, 2009
Economic development organizations are stepping in to help plug the credit hole. We all know what the economy is like today, and it is unlikely that the industrial and commercial real estate markets will soon turn around. As an
economic developer, I see another side of the economy where both communities and businesses are seeking opportunities and looking at alternatives ways to secure capital.
Aside from the federal stimulus incentives, municipal, state governments and educational institutions offer a variety of incentives to encourage businesses to remain in their jurisdictions. Here’s an example:
I am currently working with a printer, a cutting-edge small business with Fortune 500 customers, to preserve more than 100 good-paying jobs in a small municipality. The company’s primary obstacle: borrowing money for new equipment and other capital improvements. The deal requires $1.5 million, all of it collateralized. Because the company was in financial straits, an angel investor recently purchased the company and is investing heavily. Even with this influx of new capital, lenders consider the company a high risk. To make the deal happen, we are using state, county and municipal revolving loan funds to underwrite $750,000 of the project to add to the $750,000 conventional bank loan. The lender has virtually no exposure and has first position on all assets, including building and land that are free and clear of debt.
A key player in putting the deal together is the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity’s Participation Loan Program, one of the few available state incentives until Illinois adopts a capital budget. For more information about the program, contact Stanley Luboff, Capital Programs Manager at stanley.luboff@illinois.gov.
Chris Manheim is our guest blogger. He is the President of Manheim Solutions, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in community, workforce and small business economic development programs.
Tags: bank loan, capital budget, Chris Manheim, commercial real estate, credit, debt free, economic developer, economic development, educational institutions, federal stimulus, financial straits, Fortune 500, Illinois, Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's, Industrial, industrial real estate, Manheim Solutions, municipal, Participation Loan Program, revolving funds, secure capital, Stanley Luboff, state government, underwrite
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