Anyone who has ever worked in onsite property management probably has a small arsenal of stories to share. But WinnResidential’s Emily D’Urso is the first mom we’ve met whose kids ask her to entertain them with tales of a property manager’s daily life. “I had so many stories about things I had to fix or crazy residents. They have their favorite stories that they love for me to tell them over and over,” she told us during a recent interview at YASC DC. Her 6 and 8 year old will say: “Tell me the one about how you put the locks on the doors, or tell us the one about when the sewers backed up into people’s closets.” Now an experienced business systems analyst for WinnResidential, D’Urso describes her first job out of college, working as an assistant property manager for five affordable properties in Boston, as “the most not boring job ever.” Though she took the position simply to be self-sufficient after finishing college, her onsite property management work turned out to be an entry point into the multifamily world, leading her to a fulfilling career doing what she loves. And it gave her a first-hand look at the challenges faced by on-the-ground property staff. After moving up the property management ladder, her technical problem-solving skills were recognized during implementations of new technology, and she accepted a position in the systems department.  (WinnResidential’s merger with Lend Lease Real Estate, preceded by Lend Lease’s acquisition of Boston  Financial Group, brought D’Urso to the Winn team.) WinnResidential’s multifamily portfolio includes 94,190 units across the United States, the majority of which are affordable housing. The company is known for its rehabilitation of historic structures, and has received numerous awards for turning decaying old buildings into newly vibrant...

You never know where life’s journey will take you. Jo Marie Ziegler didn’t start life as a Michigan resident or envision a career in the property management industry, but that’s where she ended up. In 1990, Jo Marie and her husband, Amos, moved to the Great Lake State so he could study at Michigan State University.  22 years later, Jo Marie has become a veteran property professional. Based in Lansing, DTN Management Company’s portfolio includes 6800 residential units, mainly in the Lansing and East Lansing area.  This includes a significant number of properties serving Michigan State University students. A “can do attitude” is at the forefront of the DTN company values, and it’s a quality that Jo Marie exemplifies. She’s always ready to pitch in no matter what the need.  For student housing providers, move-out and move-in is an “all hands on deck” time of year. Jo Marie described it as, “long hours and you’re constantly busy but it feels really good when you’re all done.” During move-out, her job transitions to managing the rehab and freshening up of numerous DTN properties. Armed with a spreadsheet and well-versed in how to communicate with contractors, she works to turn the units as quickly as possible. The rest of the year, Jo Marie’s job has a very different focus. A self-described “Yardi Guru” who helps with Yardi support and internal training, she has a natural knack for databases. Here’s how it started: “When we converted our property management software to Yardi, one of the owners asked if I would move from the Cedar Village hub to the corporate office so I could help get that conversion to Enterprise up and running. From there, with the help of our Spartan-Net IT department we progressed from 5.0 to...

We’ve frequently shared news with you here about Yardi Systems’ numerous donations to various philanthropic causes that help people across the U.S. and beyond. Today we’re focused on an effort of people power by Yardi employees in our Dallas, Texas office. Led by Michael Sheaffer, 20 people from the Customer Service Desk gave their own time on a recent Saturday to volunteer at the North Texas Food Bank. This organization supports hungry families and individuals throughout the North Texas area with healthy and nutritious meals. “Our team discussed options and we all agreed that we are very fortunate to have jobs and to work for Yardi.  We determined that we needed to do some sort of outreach where we could directly impact those that were not as fortunate and give back to our local community.  The North Texas Food Bank is a very reputable organization that relies on volunteers to ensure they maximize their food and financial donations to help reduce hunger in our local area,” Sheaffer said. During their volunteer day, the Yardi team was packaging nonperishable food items for delivery to seniors. A regular box delivered to these seniors in need helps them supplement limited foodstuffs that they’re able to afford. In just three hours, 16,000 meals had been packaged for donation. “We chose the food bank based on individuals in the group volunteering individually in the past and the impact they were able to make.  Our thought was that we would give up a Saturday once a quarter to give back to our community and make sure that we see that there is more to our lives than just the normal 8-5 that we work for Yardi,” said Sheaffer. “Surprisingly, we had almost perfect attendance from our group and we even...

From his high-rise office in downtown Denver, Dave Woodward has a great view of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains just beyond the Mile High City. He’s also taking the long view with his new company, CompassRock Real Estate. Formerly the CEO of the Laramar Group for 12 years and prior to that a senior vice president at Archstone, UC Berkeley grad Woodward has spent his career as a property management executive. He’s now using those years of experience in a new firm that focuses on properties from special servicers, lenders and other institutional owners. “One of the things that’s really exciting for me is that CompassRock isn’t just a multifamily company, we are providing property management and other services to all real estate product types.”  Dave told us. “CW Capital is my initial financial partner, with six other clients also signed up. They will help by contributing some of the management assignments in their portfolio.” The initial portfolio will be comprised of distressed assets, mostly taken back through foreclosures. In some cases, CompassRock will also be stepping in as court-appointed receiver while the properties work their way through the foreclosure process.  Generally a two to four year window to maximize values, clean up the assets and position the properties for sale is common. “Our plan is to manage a lot of these properties and then retain management when possible upon sale.  In addition, we’ll be managing for longer-term owners as well.”  Dave explained. His business model at CompassRock will maximize efficiency with two key best practices he’s identified over the years for cutting down costs: -A shared services system for back office human resources, accounting, information technology and risk management will streamline those functions across all management categories. -Outsourcing some lower-level services, such as monthly...

Oh, those hard-to-pin-down, picky renters and their hearts’ desires. Every year, major research and development dollars are spent by trade associations and independent companies to try to figure out what will make renters choose one property over others, pay more rent for certain amenities, and stay on as long term residents. What’s being most closely scrutinized is the predilections of the “Millennial” apartment renters – the kids of Baby Boomers, ranging in age from recent high school grads to those in their early 30s – who are expected to favor renting over home ownership. As a result, some have changed their generational label to the “Rentennials.” Is it accurate? A recent National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) panel that looked at these trends expects these renters to want urban-proximate multifamily housing, with easy access to efficient public transportation as well as walkable neighborhoods, for ease of commuting and lifestyle convenience. NAHB is betting that the Rentennial trend will be a source of income for their industry in the years to come. We decided to take this research one step further and ask a group of Millennials/Rentennials how they feel about renting, home ownership, and what they want in their “ideal” apartment building. Here’s what they said. The perfect apartment? According to the NAHB, it’s the location of a property that will be the pivotal factor in attracting most renters, who dislike traveling long distances to their jobs. This insight is accurate, according to the young renters we heard from. And it’s also true that renters today want convenient public transportation access and walkable neighborhoods. “It’s all about the lifestyle for today’s renters. They want the urban experience of less commute time and immediate access to various activities,” said Jeff Kayce, vice president at Bozzuto...

Dr. Bob Holmes, executive director of the Colorado Springs-based Homeward Pikes Peak, isn’t trained as a social worker. He has an MBA and a background in education. Holmes is also a Vietnam veteran who fervently believes that job training, support and residential stability is the way to get homeless Americans back on their feet. His innovative model for doing so, Homeward Pikes Peak’s Homeless Outreach, is one of three programs Holmes oversees that support the homeless population of Colorado Springs. The Homeless Outreach effort focuses mainly on women and kids, and has served 1,868 homeless in the last 27 months. “Our total helped toward self-sufficiency is 1,409 or 75% of those entering our program,” Holmes said. “The program budget is $217,200 per year and I raise this through the generosity of foundations, such as Yardi; faith-based organizations and individuals.” Once jobs are found, the families are allowed to stay at the Aztec long enough to build up their savings for a deposit and first month’s rent on an apartment. Average residency time at the Aztec is two to three months.With room for up the 80 residents at the Aztec Motel, a struggling local property that agreed to rent exclusively to the program, Holmes and his team of 2 full time, one part time case workers assist their residents not just with housing but identifying job skills, seeking out interviews and support. Homeward Pikes Peak adults must make multiple job contacts daily, and they also participate in cooperative child care and eight hours of community service per week. Children – there are 42 at the Aztec this week – must be in school. The success stories come from all sides of the spectrum. One resident, a jobless tech worker, landed a position at Hewlett Packard....

With an international background in accounting and property management, it makes perfect sense that Shridhar Sheshadri landed at Yardi as a Senior Consultant in the Professional Services Group, based in Yardi’s Toronto, Canada office. His career has spanned four continents, taking Shridhar from his home country of India to the United Kingdom, Nigeria, Australia and New Zealand, Dubai, and now to Toronto, where he and his family have lived for nearly seven years. The opportunity to work for Yardi came along after his Canadian immigration paperwork had been approved. Shridhar told us he was struggling with the decision to leave Dubai, since he had a good job there as a controller for a large property management company. But after being referred for an interview by his brother-in-law, everything fell into place. “It was lightning speed. I think it was providence,” Shridhar said. After spending much of his life moving and also traveling for professional reasons, he hopes that Yardi Systems will be the company he retires from. His widely varied experiences, from his career start as an accountant in India to his oversight of factories in Nigeria and property management of one of the world’s largest residential towers in the Middle East, have given Shridhar a unique perspective that comes in handy when he visits Yardi clients. He travels to assist clients in the U.S. and Canada with their professional implementation processes. “This position has allowed me to mix my past experiences, my background of being a Chartered Accountant, all of my professional experience – and sit across from a Board of Directors and discuss their business rules, how their entire organization works, and try to translate how Yardi programs can best help them,” Shridhar explained. The move to North America has been advantageous...

With more than two decades of experience in the residential property management industry, Ken Doble, Partner at Atlanta-based Quantitive Realty Capital (QRC), is well-versed in what’s trending in multifamily today. A technology-savvy executive who shares updates via his Twitter feed daily, Doble began his career 20 years ago as the on-site property manager of a 24 unit apartment community of Atlanta apartments. He’s also a military veteran, and served as a paratrooper in Panama and the Gulf War. We asked for his insight on current happenings in multifamily in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic, where QRC is in the process of acquiring more properties, including distressed assets that need improvements. Most of their current 12 properties are comprised of class B and C apartments. There’s strong bidding competition among investors for class A inventory in the southeast, Doble noted, especially in top markets like Atlanta. QRC has focused on opportunities in the secondary markets and properties that need rehabilitation. In 2011, the company spent $7 million on renovations.  Improving those properties is Doble’s favorite part of the work he does today. “I like seeing the transformation of the property. We typically go in and buy distressed properties that have deferred maintenance. I like to go in and do the renovations on those properties and see the properties come up from a low occupancy, say in the 60s, to the 95-96 range. I like to see the properties really stabilize, see the happy residents, and see the properties and staff really take off and perform.” At the Parkview Apartments in metro Atlanta, where 18 units were down and there were crime, aesthetic and mold issues on site, QRC achieved a complete turnaround in just a number of months. With large numbers of families in residence at...

ECI Group owns and manages 9300 units of multifamily housing, with 37 communities in Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, and Alabama and more on the way. David Hirsch, Chairman, tells us that ECI has new developments in the works as the multifamily market continues its strong performance. Occupancy rates at the company properties are in the 90s and the regional apartment market is strong, Hirsch said. Based in Marietta, Ga., the company is privately owned and has been recognized as one of the leading developers and providers of housing in the Southeastern United States. The newest ECI Group apartment projects are located in Apex, North Carolina, and Charlottesville, Virginia. The Apex project will consist of around 300 conventional garden apartments, and Charlottesville is a “Texas donut” midrise complex also around 300 units. Keeping up with amenities to meet tenant desires and demands is one of ECI’s many priorities. Some ECI properties feature fireplaces, 9 foot ceilings, washer and dryer connections, large patios and balconies, screened-in porches, large walk-in closets, designer kitchens, high speed internet access, and water views. Among the companies top properties are the Columns Apartments, such as the Columns at Bear Creek (New Port Richey, Fl.), Columns at Cabana West (Panama City Beach, Fl.), and Columns at Pilgrim Mill (Cumming, Ga.). ECI has made near-comprehensive use of Yardi’s product suite to streamline their business practices and aid their employees in establishing an uber-efficient workflow.  Using Voyager, Portal, PAYScan, Procure to Pay, Site Stuff, CHECKscan, and Yardi Energy Solutions, ECI Group’s onsite staff have been able to work faster and smarter by eliminating tasks that used to eat up significant amounts of time in their day, such as making individual orders for site supplies (Site Stuff makes all procurement a snap) and even trips...

Janet Spargur, a quality assurance lead for Yardi System’s Commercial division, has two children of her own, but she’s helped bring many more into this world. Her personal passion for assisting with childbirth as a doula – someone who provides emotional support and encouragement while a new mother is in labor – has led her to become active as a fundraiser and volunteer for birth-related causes. With a professional background as an accountant, Janet made a move to join the Yardi team more than 14 years ago after working as a controller for a property management company. She quickly found that she had a true interest in the company’s products, and enjoyed being part of a team that helped make them run smoothly. “The thing I like best is having being on the edge of what commercial development is doing and being knowledgeable about that. It feels good to have the latest and greatest information,” said the longtime Santa Barbara resident. Though her busy Yardi schedule doesn’t always allow her to pursue support requests from expectant moms, Janet worked to found the Central Coast Doula Association, a resource non-profit for parents that helps connect them with experienced doulas. She was the only area doula asked to join the board of the Santa Barbara Birth Center, an alternative to a hospital environment for childbirth that opened in Fall 2011. The center “targets people who want to have something in between home births and the hospital,” she explained. As a resource for first-time Yardi moms, Janet said she is always happy to answer questions about pregnancy, childbirth, and the variety of options available to parents. “She spent a lot of time with my wife in the months leading up to the delivery and was a great...

With a long history in property management that started in his hometown of New York City, Alex Ruiz of Picerne Real Estate Group is on top of the latest developments in tax credit, project-based Section 8, and public housing agency regulations. Alex was one of the many terrific clients to join us for training at YASC DC this week. He coordinates the use of Yardi products for 128 properties in Picerne’s affordable management division, trains on-site property management staff on how to use Yardi’s systems, and picks up compliance paperwork duty as needed. “It’s an IT job but it’s not really an IT job,” Alex told us. “I get to do a little bit of everything. I visit the properties, interact with the staff, listen to their recommendations, and find out what they want Yardi to do for them. I’m an accountant one day and an IT person the next.” He’s made great use of his former experiences as a property manager, both in New York City and Orlando, in order to better serve his coworkers’ IT needs and implement software and report-writing customizations that allow them to do their jobs more efficiently. “When someone comes with a request or wants to see something in Yardi, I can think the process through from the end user’s perspective,” he said. “And when I do Yardi training, I understand what they go through.  When people come into IT straight out of school, they just know the database side, and not the day to day operations for property management or accounting or finance.” One of his major goals is moving the Picerne properties he works with toward a paperless office, which can be tough when compliance requires so much paper work. Procure to Pay is the next...

After a busy day of training and networking for the nearly 1000 attendees at YASC DC 2012, it was time to relax and socialize a bit at the Washington Hilton on Tuesday night. Attendees enjoyed a buffet of delicious food, cocktails and non-alcoholic drinks, and the company of their fellow YASC attendees. Many chatted and networked before heading out for a great meal at one of the many gourmet restaurants near Dupont Circle. We had the pleasure of meeting many of our great clients and coworkers. All photos by Alina Patel, Yardi Systems photographer. Kerry James and Elizabeth Giles Paul Sherman Richard Goff, Jim Walsh and Samuel Lopez Diane MacAdam, Linda Bradley, Margaret Furman, Steve Huikko, Jennifer Shannon Todd Barthel, Sonia Hamilton and Matt Martin Angel Savers, Carole Casale and Marjorie Spaulding Elizabeth Perez and Adam Cashmore Jeff Hull, Sean Shoemaker and Jerry Long...

Isabella Mitchell’s  outlook on life is simple: One hundred years from now it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, or how much was in my bank account, but the world may be a little better because I was important to a child. But it’s not just children that Isabella, a mother of two, wants to make a difference with.  She has a passion for creating an experience. As an implementation team lead for residential and condo clients of Yardi based in Glen Head, N.Y., Isabella takes great pride in connecting with clients. “If you can form a relationship with the client it just makes the whole journey better. From the kickoff call till the upgrade to the live team phone call, it should be a Yardi experience:  a professional, friendly, personal experience,” she said. Creating the Yardi experience is second nature to Isabella because Yardi combines all of her favorite things: people, real estate, and computers.  She was first attracted to technology in primary school and later attended St. John’s University, where she earned a degree in computer science.  After college, she spent several years at Dale Carnegie Training (her parents happened to work there as well) in the IT dept.  The experience helped foster Isabella’s love of people and she was able to take some of the management training courses they provided, developing skills that she still uses daily. Born into an Italian family, Isabella’s kids are first generation Americans. Culture and extended family are two vital parts of daily life. On holidays, those priorities move to the forefront.  Christmas Day at the Mitchell house is an event, the same way her mom has always done it. Twenty-two guests enjoy a seven course...

John G. Picerne’s desire to give something back to the military families, many of whom who live in Picerne Military Housing properties, was the impetus behind Our Family for Families First, a non-profit that funds educational scholarships for the children and spouses of U.S. Service Members. The organization was recently feted at the White House after being honored as a winner of the People’s Choice award in the Joining Forces Community Challenge, an effort to celebrate organizations that benefit America’s military families Maria Montalvo, executive director of Our Family for Families First, told us that receiving the award was overwhelming. “It was just fantastic not only to be recognized to but see all these other great organizations that are doing such good work, which I think is one of the best things about the Joining Forces program. It’s identifying a lot of resources that are out there for military families,” Montalvo said. When John Picerne created the Our Family for Families First initiative in 2006, he wanted to do something to impact military families on a very practical level. “It is important to me that we serve the families of our active-duty Service Members, and continue to be active and dedicated members of the communities we live and work in. My daughters, Alexandra and Caroline, and I, are honored to play a small role in helping military family members attain their educational goals,” Picerne wrote on the organization’s website. Montalvo explained that the hope is to support the award recipients both financially and emotionally. The foundation stays in touch with those who receive scholarships both to monitor their academic progress but also to offer support and encouragement. The first class of graduating seniors to receive the awards finished their studies last year and are...

Pam Morrison is a longtime employee and leader at RentGrow, a Yardi subsidiary in Waltham, Mass., who has great passion for her work as RentGrow’s manager of business analytics. She’s an expert on creating custom reports for clients and is excited about further integration of Yardi’s new business intelligence offerings, especially Yardi Orion for Sharepoint with RentGrow’s platform. Outside of the office, Pam has the same commitment to her hometown of Chelmsford, where she grew up and now serves as the Recording Clerk for the town’s Finance Committee. She’s also a dedicated volunteer for the Chelmsford Women of Today, which supports education, service and fundraising projects on behalf of all kinds of causes and local organizations. The Chelmsford Women are a division of United States Women of Today, which advocates leadership, personal growth and community service for by its members. Pam has recently helped make quilts for pediatric patients, urged grocery shoppers to purchase a donation for the local food bank, picked out Easter baskets for children affected by domestic violence, and bowled in a fundraiser for a battered women’s shelter. (She was a collegiate bowler at the University of Massachusetts, where she studied technical communications.) The Chelmsford Women also supply the local fire and police departments with stuffed animals that they can give to children who might be affected by one of their service calls. And they purchase and deliver Mother’s Day gifts to the women living in a local battered women’s shelter. “It’s been a big part of my life for many years. I’m extremely involved with the community through that, and I’ve made a lot of friends that I otherwise would never have met,” Pam told us. A rural community of 30,000 where preserving open space is important to residents, Chelmsford...

Yardi Systems’ Raleigh, N.C. team let their artistic sides loose last Friday to create temporary murals in one of their office conference rooms. The interim installation of cool employee-painted art, which will stay up during an office expansion, resulted in a variety of cool colorful murals. Here’s one of the most artistic from the Commercial team. Looks like they have great creative skills in addition to real estate technology know how!...

Yardi Systems’ philanthropic efforts take on many forms, from monetary donations to employee-powered efforts to benefit and serve their communities. Sometimes the contributions are a combination of both. One of the most impressive food drives conducted at Yardi’s offices is the collection made on behalf of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina. Each year, employees in our Raleigh office surpass the amount of donations they collected the year before. In 2011, 4,000 pounds of food were collected. They’re urged on by Rose Heibert, a team member with particular personal passion for the cause. Yardi also contributed a $10,000 general operating fund donation last year. With food and the grant, Yardi has provided 45,868 meals to the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina to date.  Employees from Yardi’s Raleigh office also donate their free time as Food Bank volunteers.  Volunteer jobs include sorting food, packaging bulk items into distributable packets, administrative tasks and much more. The Food Bank of CENC has seen large growth in the need for its services over the last three years, and that need exists year round. Last year the organization distributed 42.7 million pounds of food.  Serving 34 counties, donations are distributed from the central food bank to more than 800 partner agencies such as soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters, and programs for children and adults through warehouses in Durham, Greenville, New Bern, Raleigh, the Sandhills (Southern Pines) and Wilmington. Within the Food Bank CENC’s service area, approximately 545,000 people are at risk for hunger, meaning that they “may or may not know where their next meal is coming from,” said Jennifer M. Caslin, coordinator of marketing, public and branch relations for the Food Bank. Of that population, 34 percent of those who may be...

Joanne Massey is the controller for Sundance Square, the renowned Fort Worth property management firm owned by the Bass family that controls 35 city blocks of the city’s downtown core, including numerous historic buildings, and is considered one of America’s most successful urban revitalization efforts.  But her interest in cool stuff from the past doesn’t end when she leaves the office. In her free time, Joanne and her husband Robert enjoy shooting vintage lever action guns – “the kind that cowboys used to shoot” – in Cowboy Silhouette competitions. She’s reached the AAA level in many of the competition categories, which is no surprise when you learn that she’s a former national-caliber archery athlete. She got into Cowboy Silhouette after reconnecting with her husband, a college sweetheart whom she married four years ago. He was attending competitive rifle and shotgun events, so she tagged along. The Omaha native is also an avid golfer who hits the course several times a month. “I won’t go and just sit, that’s too boring,” she told us. While attending college at Texas Christian University, she was the top female collegiate archer in the state of Texas, and ranked in the top 10 nationally. Though the U.S. team selection process for the 1980 Olympic Games didn’t go in her favor, she has fond memories of her archery days. Joanne is also right on target with her career at Sundance Square, where she rose up through the Bass corporate accounting office to head up the accounting team for Sundance and oversee numerous major software transitions. Her team initially ran two high-rise office towers, then merged with another Bass-owned operation to form Sundance Square that oversees all of the downtown properties. She loves her job. “Being in a property management office,...

Julie Bradley is known for her efforts to deliver great customer service to her Yardi Voyager clients, who rave about her custom reports and willingness to go the extra mile. But there are a lot of things they might not know about Julie – like her status as a member of MENSA, that she’s a math whiz who loves hard number puzzles, and that she named two of her three sons after Alice Cooper. Oh, and she also collects whisks (that’s right, those things you use to beat an egg) and has a tattoo of a dragonfly on her ankle. Who said math majors are boring? Julie worked for CTI for 11 years before coming on board with Yardi nearly two years ago. She’s a team lead for Client Services based in Dallas, Texas. “I love the challenges and working with the data, and I love writing reports and getting in and looking at things behind the scenes to figure out problems” Julie told us. She also likes helping her clients with problem-solving and producing the results they are hoping for. Julie holds a degree in mathematics from North Texas State University and has always loved the logical aspect of math with its absolute results. She loved logic puzzles as a kid and today can spend hours playing a game called Kakuro, a Japanese logic puzzle that’s considered the “mathematical transliteration of the crossword,” according to Wikipedia. Some of the puzzles can take days to solve. Her MENSA status is directly tied to her love of math and puzzles as well. “I wouldn’t say I’m an active member, but a few years ago I wanted to challenge myself to see if I could pass their test. The test consists of a lot of logic...

The wishes range from the simple – “I wish to have a PlayStation 2,” one little boy requested – to the unusual – “I wish to receive a blessing from the Pope,” asked another.  But both were granted, thanks to the efforts of the Make a Wish Foundation of Georgia and Alabama. Make a Wish, a national organization with chapters around the country, is supported by Yardi Systems as part of our corporate philanthropy program.  Helping sick kids realize some of their wildest dreams is the organization’s mission. “There are parents who tell us they hadn’t seen their child smile until they got their wish,” said Jill Thornton, Director of Development for Individual Giving.  “We have children who wouldn’t eat, and after they got their wish they were able to start eating again.” The wish recipients are usually struggling with chronic, sometimes terminal illnesses. “When these children are granted a wish, they get more than just a great experience for a day, two days or a week.  That special wish improves the quality of life for them and their families.  It gives them hope, strength and joy during a very difficult and challenging time,” explained John J. Brennan,  CEO of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Georgia and Alabama. Yardi has donated over $35,000 to the organization over the last three years. “On behalf of all our “Wish” children and their families, as well as our volunteers and staff, I thank and applaud Yardi for making such a vital and far-reaching difference in the lives of our Make-A-Wish children, year after year!”  Brennan said. See some of the touching stories of the wishes granted by the organization recently on their website. Below, read about a wish that was granted for a 10-year-old girl named Jessa. Yardi...