Some potential dangers are close at hand: pandemics, extreme weather, volcanoes and computer viruses, among others. Another one is 93 million miles away: the sun. The life-enabling nuclear fusion ball that Walt Whitman marveled as “O so amazing and broad—up there resplendent, darting and burning!” also holds the power to cause chaos for humanity and its various forms of commerce. The danger comes in the form of solar storms. One such event occurs when the sun releases a blast of plasma called a coronal mass ejection (CME) that arrives at Earth a few days later. Another ejection, known as a solar flare, comprises a burst of radiation traveling at the speed of light. When one of these phenomena hits Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere, it creates a geomagnetic storm that can cause satellites, transformers, relays, sensors and other equipment vital to power grids, navigation, internet service, defense systems, financial transactions, communications and any number of other operations to fail. A large-scale CME or flare, Forbes reported last year, “would knock out power plants, transmission lines, and substations for entire regions or cities. Huge swaths of the world’s population could be without power for weeks at a time, leading to health crises, food shortages, and devastating economic effects.” Anyone tempted to dismiss such a scenario as science fiction should consider the Carrington Event of 1859, the largest solar storm ever recorded. This CME caused telegraph systems around the world to fail catastrophically. Scientists have found evidence of even larger event in A.D. 774, called the Miyake Event. A geomagnetic storm one-third the size of the Carrington Event hit Quebec, Canada, in 1989, causing the electric grid to collapse and putting 5 million people out of power for nine hours. Twelve years later, scientists detected a...
Central Texas Food Bank
Addressing root causes of hunger
The Central Texas Food Bank (CTFB) is on a mission to nourish hungry people and lead the community in the fight against hunger. Founded in 1981 in Austin, Texas, the Yardi-supported food bank fights against hunger by soliciting, receiving, storing and distributing donated food to community service partner agencies that directly serve individuals in need. CTFB is a critical part of Austin’s food safety net infrastructure, serving as the primary food source for 250 food pantries, mobile pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other human service agencies. Through economies of scale, CTFB can procure food and distribute it to social service agencies at a lesser cost than other agencies. The result is more food available for distribution to low-income clients by all agencies. “CTFB is the primary food source for the agencies we serve, providing 75 percent of all food distributed throughout the network each year,” said Nigel Fuentes, corporate relations manager at CTFB. Supply chain issues were a significant challenge in the 2022 reporting term for CTFB. There were many factors from high consumer demand, weather, and geopolitics – to packaging, labor, transportation, and ingredient supply shortages. “In the short term, we’ve reorganized our food sourcing team, and they’re aggressively pursuing new food donor relationships,” shared Fuentes. “We’re stabilizing our shopping list with staple items and sourcing substantial quantities of fresh produce, which is more available in today’s national food supply and meets our goals to provide healthy food options.” In addition, CTFB is doing more to address the root causes of hunger and focusing on benefits assistance, workforce solutions, and health outcomes. These changes will help insulate the food bank from market fluctuations they experienced last year. Funding from Yardi is used to support food acquisition and distribution. “Funding will help our mission to nourish hungry people by supporting CTFB’s food assistance programs and enabling us to meet the ongoing demand for our services in 2023,” shared Fuentes. Volunteer Opportunities #TeamYardi in the Austin office will volunteer once a quarter for half a day each visit. “The Central Texas Food Bank is proud to partner with Yardi to help fight hunger issues in our community, and we look forward to partnering for years to come,” enthused Fuentes. Volunteers are the heart and soul of CTFB. Weekday and weekend volunteer opportunities are available, perfect for individuals and groups. Help prepare food donations for distribution and distribute food at mobile food pantries. Find out more information about volunteering here. Find future non-profit profiles...
Earth Day Options
Protecting the Planet
Let’s go green! Earth Day is April 22. Earth Day is celebrated with over a billion people worldwide, promoting a clean, green environment. Companies that have developed robust Environmental Social Governance (ESG) standards are seeing better profitability, stronger financial performance, and happier employees. Yardi was recently awarded the ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy for the fifth year. Earth Day is important to us at our offices worldwide, as it is for our clients and their communities. No time is more vital than the present to act and invest in our planet. Here are some ideas to mark Earth Day at your properties and be good guardians of the environment. Host a “lights out” event for your community. Host a happy hour in the clubroom for an hour and encourage residents to turn off their electronics inside their units. Have organic paper-made utensils and plates. Serve up some organic cupcakes, green juices, and organic coffee. Clean-up event at a local park. Host a trash pick-up day if you are close to a park or recreation center. Residents can come out and help clean up the park free of cans, plastics, or any other trash that is on site. Be sure to provide supplies residents need, such as trash bags and gloves. Then, take it a step further and plant a tree with residents. Plant a tree or some flowers around the property. Native plants are the best option for local bees to pollinate. Plants serve as mood boosters and increase productivity and creativity. Your green efforts will give you leverage over the competition to retain or attract new residents. Explore the outdoors. This saves on indoor gym...
Fair Housing Month
Celebrate with Aspire
April is Fair Housing Month! 2023 marks the 55th anniversary of the Fair Housing Act, a federal law that protects people from discrimination when renting or buying a home, along with other housing-related activities. Just in time for Fair Housing Month, Yardi Aspire courses have been refreshed with an all-new illustrated design and an interactive narrative style that keeps learners engaged. In Aspire, returning learners will notice a new cast of characters and new scenario-based challenges that shine a spotlight on real-world violation risks by property type (market rate versus affordable) and role (property manager, leasing, marketing and maintenance). Fair Housing Month reminds industry professionals that diversity and inclusion are important in our communities, as are the laws that uphold these principles in housing and housing-related services. It is recommended that companies invest in proactive employee training to ensure compliance, prevent costly fines and avoid punitive damages and legal fees related to violations. While fair housing training is not mandated by the federal government, it is best practice for employers to require all employees in public and resident-facing roles to complete a comprehensive learning plan of two to five hours within the first 30 days of employment — and recertify on a shorter version of the training annually thereafter. With a comprehensive catalog of customizable micro-training modules, clients can remove pages and insert company-specific policies, anecdotes and key messages to achieve greater impact. Aspire courses are routinely updated by certified federal fair housing experts. Aspire gives learners the chance to prepare for situations before they arise. Real-world practice challenges provide a supportive environment for employees to explore appropriate responses to reasonable accommodation requests and fair housing complaints. Enhance supervisor and administrator awareness with a connected system that ensures training compliance. Aspire delivers deep data...
Art of the Covenant
Best Practices for Minimizing CRE Borrowing Risk
Covenants – agreements between a debtor (borrower) and creditor, or lender, are a staple of commercial real estate loans. Designed to reduce risk for lenders, loan covenants commit the borrower to execute certain behaviors, such as making principal and interest payments when due, and avoid others, such as selling the assets that underpin the loan without first repaying it in full. Certain economic conditions – falling portfolio values, high operational expenses, rising vacancy rates – increase the risk of violating, or breaching, a loan covenant, by being late on payments or reporting or by failing to meet financial benchmarks. One example of a covenant breach is a CFO missing a debt service ratio, which measures the cash flow available to pay current debt obligations. That could result in the lender calling the loan, forcing the company to obtain financing to repay the called loan. Avoiding such a scenario requires transparency in lender requirements, deep understanding of the factors that influence debt such as forecasts and rents. “Covenant tracking is a big trend now. On the borrower side, the emphasis is on transparency and getting insight into debt portfolios,” observes Chris Barbier, senior manager of investment management for Yardi. How can borrowers minimize risk and maximize efficiency in managing their loan covenants? One of the most reliable ways involves using one technology platform rather than multiple systems for loan, asset management and investment activities. “If you’ve got an operating property – which is usually the collateral for the loan in a system – and then you’ve got loans being tracked somewhere else, the two processes are not aligned. A tightly integrated solution allows for better transparency and risk management,” Barbier says. A single technology system that centralizes all loan information and automates processes helps borrowers by: Ensuring deliverables are sent to lenders. Monitoring the compliance status of key covenants. Tracking and accounting for different types of loans Tracking changes in loan terms over time and their impact on the amortization schedule. Providing full visibility into asset operational performance such as loss of income and deterioration in asset values, making it easier to anticipate and deal with potential problems. Reducing manual errors by eliminating spreadsheets. Providing full visibility and an audit trail into payment history. Most importantly, such a system “provides a single source of truth. That means transparency from the investment to how the loan and underlying collateral are performing,” Barbier says. Learn how Yardi Debt Manager enables tracking and accounting for a loan portfolio and provides visibility into debt obligations with the underlying operating...
Atlanta Community Food Bank
Halting Hunger
Let’s get to know another standout North American hunger prevention organization supported by Yardi, the Atlanta Community Food Bank (ACFB) of Atlanta, GA. Founded in 1979, ACFB is the central hub in the fight against hunger in Atlanta and North Georgia. ACFB’s primary focus is collecting and distributing donated food and goods and managing all the logistics and partner relationships that go with it. In addition, ACFB offers some social services to those directly in need and has supplemental food pantries and mobile markets to get food to underserved areas their partner agencies can’t reach. “Last fiscal year, we distributed 93 million pounds of food to our over 700 partners in 29 county service areas,” said Ben Burgess, corporate relations manager for ACFB. ACFB foresees government cuts to the SNAP program this year and recently had the expiration of the Child Tax Credit, which helped decrease child food insecurity by over 25 percent during the pandemic. “Our goal is the make sure we have enough funding to purchase enough food to fill these food gaps in the coming year,” shared Burgess. ACFB is hoping to open one, and possibly two, Community Food Centers in their service area that will be focused on local areas with high rates of food insecurity and are designed to be open four days a week for food distribution to meet the growing demand and reduce barriers to food access. Funding from Yardi has provided enough support this year to help over 180,000 meals for families in need. Since March 2020, Yardi has helped ACFB give over 2 million meals to families in need. “The support we have received from Yardi has been unwavering and absolutely vital to our work,” shared Burgess. “Your support has literally saved lives, and you are a true community partner, and we are so grateful to you all!” Family support It was a tough school year for kids like Nathan, not just because of math class. Most nights, there’s not much food at home. His dad, Seth, works a lot, and when he is home, he’s tired and there isn’t much in the fridge. Nathan’s hungry, anxious about school, and worried about his Dad. That’s why this family is thankful for the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Despite historically expensive food prices, they still have the chance to have the nutritious meals they need thanks to ACFB. “I do everything I can, but everything just isn’t enough anymore,” Seth said. “Knowing that this community won’t let my family go hungry is a relief I’ve never experienced.” Volunteer Opportunities The Atlanta Yardi Breeze Premier team recently volunteered at the ACFB’s Hunger Action Center. This center is available seven days a week except on holidays. Details below: Address: 3400 North Desert Drive, Atlanta, GA 30344 Shifts: Monday – Sunday 8:30 am – 11:30 am or 1:30 pm – 4:30 pm Shift maximum: 60 volunteers in a single shift Activity: Join the fight to end hunger with a high-energy session of activities at ACFB’s brand-new Atlanta warehouse. As a Hunger Action Center volunteer, you may assist with many tasks, including sorting and packing recently donated food, repackaging produce or grains for families, or boxing non-perishable items for seniors across Atlanta. Several projects in the Hunger Action Center guarantee a fantastic day of volunteering! In addition, ACFB will train you on your day of service for the day’s project. So rest assured that the music is loud, the packing is fast-paced, and the personal reward of making a difference can’t be replaced. To register your group, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Ben Burgess, [email protected] “You should know how supportive the company has truly been for the metro Atlanta and Northwest Georgia area and the people we serve. Thanks to Yardi, many families couldn’t choose between eating and keeping the lights on, getting the medicine needed, or paying the rent. So, from the bottom of...
Rents Rise
According to Yardi Matrix
Multifamily asking rents rose slightly last month as demand stayed strong despite economic challenges, according to the new National Multifamily Report from Yardi Matrix. The average U.S. asking rent rose $3 in March to $1,706. Year-over-year growth fell to four percent nationally, 90 basis points less than February and the lowest level since rents started an unprecedented climb in April 2021. Single-family rental rates increased in March by $5 to $2,079, while the year-over-year increase fell by 80 basis points to 2.8 percent. “The first quarter produced no gains for multifamily rents for the first time in a decade, but the results come as somewhat of a relief,” say Matrix experts. “Multifamily demand held up well despite the attention given to the Federal Reserve-induced economic slowdown, bank failures and the deceleration from the outsize rent gains of the last two years. Rents and occupancy are stable as the market heads into the growth season.” Rents and the national occupancy rate were unchanged during the first quarter of 2023, and 21 of the top 30 Matrix metros recorded rent gains in March. Gain more insights by downloading March’s Multifamily Report. Yardi Matrix offers the industry’s most comprehensive market intelligence tool for investment professionals, equity investors, lenders and property managers who underwrite and manage investments in commercial real estate. Yardi Matrix covers multifamily, student housing, industrial, office and self storage property types. Email [email protected], call (480) 663-1149 or visit yardimatrix.com to learn...
STAR Power
Yardi Earns Fifth EPA Award
Each year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) honors a group of businesses and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through superior energy efficiency achievements. Since 1992, the EPA’s ENERGY STAR program and its partners helped prevent four billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from entering our atmosphere. In 2020 alone, the program’s emissions reductions were equivalent to more than five percent of U.S. total greenhouse gas emissions. Highest EPA accolade As a Service and Product Provider, Yardi is proud to receive the 2023 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Sustained Excellence Award from the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy after being named Partner of the Year for five consecutive years. The award is the highest EPA honor and celebrates companies that offer energy services and products in the commercial, institutional or industrial markets for successfully assisting their clients in strategic energy management and building design. This includes energy services companies (ESCOs), unregulated energy retailers and marketers, engineers, architects, energy consultants, contractors, distributors, manufacturers, commercial lenders, energy information providers and any other provider of energy efficiency-related products and/or services. “As we accelerate historic efforts to address climate change, public-private partnerships will be essential to realizing the scale of our ambition,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “I applaud this year’s ENERGY STAR award winners for working with EPA to deliver a clean energy future that saves American consumers and businesses money and creates jobs.” Energizing achievements “We applaud our clients’ impressive achievements, and we are proud to receive this honor from the EPA for the fifth consecutive year. Energy efficiency is a core component of our mission as a real estate technology provider. We remain committed to continuing to help the industry and our clients gain the utmost benefits using ENERGY...
Tamar Kapner
Yardi Employee Profile
April is National Volunteer Month, so we’re pleased to highlight a few Yardi employees who make a difference in their local communities. (Know a standout volunteer you’d like to see featured? Email us.) Meet Tamar Kapner Tamar Kapner is an associate technical account manager for the Yardi Breeze Premier setup team in Atlanta, Georgia. Kapner spends most of her time in the office onboarding new clients with Breeze Premier products for their first two to three months. In addition, she supports colleagues on her team with their clients and assists other account managers in different offices across the country. She also teaches classes internally for Breeze Premier. “I love the community we create within our teams. I enjoy working closely with clients, getting to know them and their companies, and helping them learn and use our software. Then, when the software clicks with a client, and they can use it to manage and grow their business, I get so much satisfaction,” said Kapner. A company that cares Kapner is a part of the Atlanta Office holiday planning committee and assists in planning holiday gatherings. She is also the Atlanta Breeze Premier volunteer committee coordinator and sets up opportunities for the team to volunteer at the Atlanta Community Food Bank. “Yardi feels like family. The Yardi motto can be felt in every aspect of the job. This is a company that cares. Cares not only for our clients but for each other and our communities. I love working for Yardi. This company values everyone for what they bring to the table,” Kapner shared. Kapner describes Yardi as a place where input and contribution matter. “No one here is just a number that meets metrics.” She continued, “Yardi cares about each employee and works hard to...
Coworking Center Benefits
For employers and employees
Coworking centers are becoming a popular solution for many employees in a new, more flexible world of hybrid, remote, and in-office work. Let’s explore the benefits of a coworking center. Desirability: Coworking centers are attractive to workers. They typically incorporate open space, bright light, modern layouts and an artistic environment. Some even have private rooftop terraces that overlook city skylines. Find several cities worldwide that now have coworking centers. Flexibility: As office workers adapt to new normal, flexibility is the most productive and efficient way to respond to change. Flexible office space is an ideal workplace compromise. Use of a coworking center forgoes the need to hot desk or hotel existing traditional office space – sharable space with needed amenities is already provided, as are collaborative meeting spaces. And since coworking centers are shared spaces, employers can pay monthly without committing to a long lease. Ease of use: Coworking centers will keep up with frequent technology changes. Coworking centers will always have high-speed internet and WiFi. In addition, coworking centers offer video and audio-enabled conference rooms, modern computer systems, improved HVAC systems, member mobile apps for easy bookings, and touchless technology. Some centers may have smart windows to block the outside street noise or can adjust for the lighting needed. Other amenities of coworking centers include parking, electric vehicle charging stations, bike storage, espresso bars, wellness rooms, fitness centers, and event spaces. Some coworking centers are even dog-friendly! Pool tables, dartboards, and ping pong tables are also available in coworking centers for enjoyable mental breaks. Collaboration: Coworking centers offer collaboration opportunities for employers and employees. Working in a virtual work environment, some forms of human contact are lost. When the team can unite in-person, collaborative work and creative ideas are cultivated. The saying “two heads are better than one” is still relevant, especially when working on projects, sales pitches and leads, and event planning. Coming together in a positive space gives the team a chance to brainstorm, collaborate, mentor, and build company culture. Community: Being in a coworking center builds a self-nurturing community among startups, freelancers, creative professionals, and corporate employees who need a focused workspace. The community of coworkers makes the workspace engaging and vibrant, elevating mood and performance. Plus, coworking centers are often located in busy metro areas. Many coworking centers will be found by gyms and restaurants, allowing employees to enjoy city life in conjunction with the coworking experience. Modern offices, equipped with high-end technology, customer-oriented amenities and features, and open space design, will be a requirement if companies decide to pursue a full-scale return to the office. Flexible coworking centers are the ideal compromise: they allow employees to work when and where they feel most comfortable, while preserving the critical benefits of in-person collaboration and...
The Metaverse
Real Estate's New Frontier
Is the virtual real estate market the new frontier thanks to the metaverse? Investors are now looking at metaverse real estate, an online platform where people can buy, sell, and lease virtual property, according to recent article in the New York Times. A general contractor and NFT (nonfungible token) collector, Gabe Sierra, in Miami, offered his latest creation, an 11,000-square-foot mansion, but to spice up the deal, he provided the exact twin home in the metaverse. The property hits the auction block this month, and Sierra is hoping for a sale price of around $10 million. “It’s a project that blends the line between physical and digital to the furthest extent that I could go on a residential home,” said Sierra. “It pairs a real-world build and expands on it in the digital space. It will make much more sense as these technologies get more immersive.” Financial transactions in the metaverse are handled in cryptocurrency and powered by the blockchain, a digital distributed public ledger that eliminates the need for a third party like a bank. According to Technavio, the metaverse real estate market is expected to grow by $5.37 billion by 2026. In the Sandbox, one of the most popular metaverse worlds, much of the virtual land has been purchased by global corporations like Adidas, which is there to sell products. The total land value in The Sandbox was estimated to be $167 million last year. While a parcel is sold for about $400, there is a secondary market where prices can be many times that. Proximity to land owned by celebrities and big-name brands drives up prices. One buyer paid $450,000 to become Snoop Dogg’s neighbor in “Snoopverse.” “Land is becoming the infrastructure of the metaverse,” said Sebastien Borget, co-founder of the...
Foodbank of Santa Barbara County
Mission to End Hunger
Yardi has long supported The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, which has been the region’s leading food distribution and hunger-relief organization for over 40 years. Company support includes financial contributions, matching grants and frequent staff volunteer opportunities from departments across Yardi. Western Residential CSD team members volunteered with the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, picking over 3,000 pounds of oranges for the Foodbank to distribute to families. Established in 1982, the Foodbank’s mission is to end hunger and transform the health of Santa Barbara County with good nutrition. The Foodbank’s strategic plan takes a holistic approach to fighting hunger through healthy food distribution, empowering nutrition and food literacy education, and disaster preparedness and response. “The Foodbank serves 200,000 unduplicated clients each year with over 10 million pounds of food, 43 percent of which is fresh produce,” shared Jenifer Sanregret, corporate giving manager. The Foodbank pairs food distribution efforts with various innovative direct-to-client services with programming focusing on food literacy and nutritional education. These programs address food insecurity and hunger by providing access to nutritious food and nutrition education, contributing to food literacy and healthy outcomes. The Foodbank uses census and school meal data to prioritize programs in low-income and rural areas with high rates of food insecurity. All food and nutrition education programs are offered free cost to children, families and seniors. Foodbank of Santa Barbara County staff. “The Foodbank is currently three-quarters of the way through our 2022-2023 fiscal year. Based on current trends, we expect to provide 1,500 seniors with 499,500 pounds of healthy foods, including 183,500 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables, by the end of FY23,” said Sanregret. Funding from Yardi has helped provide healthy food and fresh produce to all food-insecure individuals countywide. Funds are used to make purchases of pantry staples such as rice, beans and whole grains, and fresh produce like apples, mandarins and artichokes. The Santa Barbara foodbank will be opening a new facility called the Sharehouse/Warehouse in December 2023. A place to share food, education, and hope for the community. The new Sharehouse will cut fuel emissions, reduce food waste, and increase food safety. Additionally, it will allow the Foodbank to store more than 750,000 pounds of food, making 585,000 meals available for immediate distribution and enabling them to accept 80,000 more pounds of food donations each week. Friendly competition: Yardi Santa Barbara participates in the End Hunger Games In November 2022 as well as in many past years, Yardi Santa Barbara employees participated in the End Hunger Games campaign, a friendly competition between local companies. Employees worked together to raise money, host internal food drives, volunteer at Backyard Bounty Glean and spread awareness about the efforts throughout the community. “Your partnership gives us a special sense of gratitude because we recognize the important value of collaboration in meeting the community’s needs.” Sanregret continued, “This tremendous support is very much needed as 38 percent of children in our county are food insecure, and we continue to see an increase in the cost of groceries. We are so grateful for the support from Yardi and the efforts made by all the employees to help us continue our work to end hunger and transform the health of our community.” Ongoing Santa Barbara County volunteer opportunities The Foodbank is always looking for volunteers to assist with its programs. Needs include volunteers to sort and pre-pack groceries for distribution at the Santa Barbara and Santa Maria warehouses, delivery drivers for seniors, and educators for children’s nutrition programs. “Volunteers who work with older adults provide clients with a source of comfort and socialization after two years of sheltering in place. The best way to get involved with the Foodbank is to create an account through Volunteer Hub and “Opt-In” to our emails. We will email you as new volunteer opportunities, and community distributions are added,” shared Sanregret. Find future non-profit profiles...
Partner of the Year
Sustained Excellence Recognized
Yardi is honored to receive the 2023 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Sustained Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy after being named Partner of the Year for five consecutive years. The award celebrates companies that offer energy services and products in the commercial, institutional or industrial markets for successfully assisting clients with strategic energy management and building design. Partner of the Year award winners have made a long-term commitment to fighting climate change and promoting public health through energy efficiency messaging. In addition to promoting ENERGY STAR, Partner of the Year award recipients work with ENERGY STAR to continuously improve and advance service offerings. The award acknowledges Yardi’s efforts to educate and support clients with benchmarking services and technology solutions across real estate sectors including: Helping clients benchmark energy and water in over 5,500 buildings Promoting the importance of ENERGY STAR scores to clients through education, training and visibility Including ENERGY STAR in Yardi’s energy management software dashboard Publishing articles and social media posts on the benefits of benchmarking, energy management and conservation Providing digital energy courses for over 7,500 attendees during annual user conferences Sharing ENERGY STAR data to help clients gain access to green financing for buildings Earning ongoing ENERGY STAR certification for Yardi corporate headquarters in Goleta, California “As we accelerate historic efforts to address climate change, public-private partnerships will be essential to realizing the scale of our ambition,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “I applaud this year’s ENERGY STAR award winners for working with EPA to deliver a clean energy future that saves American consumers and businesses money and creates jobs.” “We are proud to receive this honor from the EPA for the fifth consecutive year. Energy efficiency is a core component of our mission as a real estate technology provider, and we applaud our clients’ impressive achievements. We look forward to continuing to help our clients and the industry gain the utmost benefits using ENERGY STAR to meet business and sustainability goals as we all work together toward a clean energy future,” said Joe Consolo, Yardi industry principal for energy. See the complete list of winners...
Enhancing RentCafe Wellness
Senior Living Solution
We’re excited to share all that’s new and improved in RentCafe Wellness, our senior living solution for managing wellness programs. At a glance, RentCafe Wellness helps you create online activity calendars, track resident attendance and so much more. Ready to explore the enhancements — all inspired by client feedback? See below for an overview of how RentCafe Wellness looks today: A glance at RentCafe Wellness RentCafe Wellness (part of the Yardi Senior Living Suite) gives you the tools to effectively manage your community wellness initiatives. With this dynamic solution, you can: Schedule activities Create digital calendars Enable online payments Keep families connected Empower staff How the solution looks today There are several enhancements to cover, but first things first, we’d like to thank our wonderful senior living clients for their thoughtful feedback on RentCafe Wellness. It’s helped us create a refreshed solution packed with new features and improved usability. Here’s a look at the latest functionality in RentCafe Wellness: Starting with digital calendars, which staff can easily create in RentCafe Wellness, there are evolved features like the ability to build reusable design templates. Calendar design templates can be used by a single community or several! Staff can also copy an existing calendar design with a single click to create a new variation. Once your calendar (or multiple calendars) is created, you can easily designate it by care level or zone. Want your calendars printed to disperse across the community? No problem! Staff can quickly print daily, weekly or monthly calendars by downloading them as PDFs or word documents. When it comes to scheduling and marketing activities, we’ve made it easier than ever. Staff can create multiple templates as the starting point for scheduling dozens of activities, whether they’re one-time or recurring. Speaking of those recurring activities, staff can save time by creating a series that auto-populates in any given calendar for upcoming months (setting a single date, a date range or for all future instances). They can transfer the previous month’s resident registrations into an upcoming calendar, too. Additional functionality includes the ability to set activity registration as optional or required, guests allowed or prospective residents welcomed, to name a few. You can also create monthly paid activities, allowing you to expand your organization’s revenue streams. Whether you host something offsite or invite local experts to provide paid services in your community, setting and collecting fees is straightforward. Every enhanced feature for managing activities helps staff reduce their administrative work — leading to more time spent engaging with residents. Benefits of a single connected solution We’ve covered snazzy features like building calendars and setting up activities, but another big differentiator with RentCafe Wellness is that it exists on a single, integrated platform. You’re gaining a complete wellness and activity management solution that connects with key elements of the Yardi Senior Living Suite. Thanks to direct integration with Voyager Senior Housing (which populates resident lists and property records), RentCafe Wellness automatically updates occupancy details when new residents move in, and when former residents move out. This real-time information sharing allows staff to easily manage resident registration, attendance and more. A connection with Yardi Payment Processing simplifies the entire workflow for paid activities. Activity charges are paid just like other community charges with a one-time monthly ACH, debit or credit card payment, or via autopay. Payments you collect — and your payments to vendors — will come through as part of the monthly payer statement. Residents and family members can conveniently submit their online payments via RentCafe Senior Living Portal. In addition to offering the convenience of online payments, RentCafe Senior Living Portal allows family members to see which activities residents are attending, and you have the option to allow family members to register for activities on a resident’s behalf. This helps families stay in the loop regarding their loved one’s health and wellbeing. As an added bonus, residents and families...
2023 Events & Tradeshows
In Senior Living
Wanting to fill your calendar with impactful senior living events? We have a roundup of recommendations that span throughout 2023, all of which offer a chance to network with senior living professionals. Keep reading for the list of events we recommend exploring this year: OLTCA/ORCA Together We Care Convention & Tradeshow First up is the OLTCA/ORCA Together We Care Convention & Tradeshow, taking place March 27-29 in Toronto. This in-person convention connects long term care and retirement community professionals, sparking conversations that are sure to challenge and inform all attendees. You can visit team Yardi at booth 308 — we’ll be excited to meet you and share more about the Yardi Senior Living Suite. Ready to get something on the books in advance? Schedule time to meet us at OLTCA/ORCA 2023. Texas Assisted Living Association Annual Conference & Tradeshow Save the date for the Texas Assisted Living Association Annual Conference & Tradeshow in Round Rock, Texas, on April 5-7. You’ll connect with assisted living leaders to share ideas, talk about industry updates and bond over lessons learned through recent challenges. Our team will be in attendance at booth 310 if you’d like to schedule time to connect! Argentum Senior Living Executive Conference The Argentum Senior Living Executive Conference is coming up as well, an annual gathering of thousands of senior living professionals, operators, owners, executives and community leaders. Set for May 8-10 in New Orleans, Louisiana, the conference is an empowering and educational experience. Not only are we sponsoring the registration, we’ll also have a presence at booth 3100. Reach out to get a meeting scheduled with team Yardi. Florida Senior Living Association Annual Conference Looking for a summer event? Head to the Florida Senior Living Association Annual Conference on June 25-28 in Boca Raton, Florida, for a chance to network with likeminded leaders. You can meet us at booth 38, but feel free to plan a meeting with us in advance. California Assisted Living Association Spring Conference & Trade Show We can’t forget the annual California Assisted Living Association Spring Conference & Trade Show, which features engaging, interactive learning sessions. This year’s Spring conference takes place June 5-7 in Sacramento, California. We’re pleased to sponsor the awards luncheon — and connect with attendees at booth 213! Be sure to stop by or contact us to connect prior to the show. California Assisted Living Association Fall Conference & Tradeshow If you plan to attend the CALA Spring Conference, make sure to mark your calendar for the California Assisted Living Association Fall Conference & Tradeshow too, taking place in Palm Springs, California, on November 6-8. We’ll have more details as the event gets closer, but we’re excited to sponsor the awards luncheon for this one. Oregon Healthcare Association Annual Convention & Trade Show Let’s talk about the Oregon Healthcare Association Annual Convention & Trade Show, which is hosted in Portland, Oregon. You can join professionals across the industry for an in-depth learning experience on September 19-20. We’re a proud co-sponsor of the awards program for this event. More details to come! See you at senior living events throughout 2023! Be sure to check our Yardi events page for the full list of events we’re attending this year. If you have questions in the meantime about our senior living management software, or you’re ready to schedule time to connect, don’t hesitate to reach out via the meeting links shared...
Tech Trends from CES
Let's Get Nerdy
Significant changes in technology are coming. At the 2023 Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas, recognized for underscoring the latest technology, Steve Koenig, Consumer Technology Association vice president of market research, highlights the newest tech-savvy trends. “Cybersecurity, cloud, artificial intelligence, and robotics are all part of it and underpins the effort and the global economy,” Koenig said. This includes speed and increased productivity benefits, improving worker safety, and optimizing space. He continues, “The metaverse is closer than you think. Metaverse is still a speculative term but make no mistake, this is a real trend, just as the internet was a real trend in the early 1990s, even though many of us didn’t know what it was. That’s the same dynamic manifesting around the metaverse right now.” Advertisements and how consumers shop look different today compared to 20 years ago. Using the metaverse and online shopping, consumers can push a shopping cart in “an elevated sense of immersion,” said Koenig. In addition, virtual meetings with sales associates when purchasing a new computer or shoes will be more common, allowing the sales representative to show the features in detail. Many are turning to electric cars with technological advancements and more autonomous transportation advancements. With a decline in truck drivers, soon the answer will be self-driving trucks, predicts Koenig. “Humans are nice to have. Technology is the answer.” Robots are becoming more advanced, especially in sustainability. For example, farmers are now using more windmills, farming robots, soil sensors, and intelligent silos. In addition, John Deere won the 2023 Best of Innovation at the CES show for a fully autonomous tractor. Regarding the gaming world, data shows that there are over 164 million self-described gamers in the US market, according to research from the CES show. However,...
Optimize Facility Management...
Reduce costs, raise asset value
How are you overseeing maintenance operations, managing service requests from tenants, tracking work orders with technicians and extending the health of equipment in your buildings? If you’re not using automation, you’re working too hard and spending too much money. It’s also easy for important things like timely repairs and inspections to fall through the cracks. You can optimize building performance and tenant experience by using facility management software to automate preventive maintenance, property inspections and work order management. Following are best practices to help commercial operators maintain peak building performance and gain portfolio-wide oversight. Tip #1 Automate service requests through a tenant portal. Reduce manual tasks for your staff and increase convenience for your tenants with online work order requests and automated scheduling. Improve communication via email and SMS messaging and ensure tenants are satisfied with your maintenance performance. Reduce man hours needed to manually field requests from email or by phone Simplify the feedback loop through follow-up tenant surveys and promote satisfaction Tip #2 Automate notifications for incoming work orders and set rules around completion. Auto-assign work orders to technicians so they can get started quickly with all the details they need. Track work to completion and eliminate time-consuming manual processes including paperwork and phone calls. You can easily track pending requests, alerts and exceptions. Shorten work order cycles by improving communication between maintenance staff and tenants Help improve tenant satisfaction by preventing requests from falling through the cracks Tip #3 Schedule preventive maintenance and inspections without paperwork. Save time by scheduling recurring property maintenance and standardizing inspection routines. Satisfy all types of inspection requirements including annual, regulatory and due diligence. Use workflows with flexible templates to ensure that inspections cover every detail, every time. Save money and man hours by extending the...
Manage Resident Vaccinations...
With Yardi EHR
The COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenging journey for us all, including senior living providers and those within their communities. From identifying infections to meeting CDC guidelines to managing resident vaccinations — each challenge has required a creative solution to help communities stay safe. So as providers continue to navigate this era — and manage resident health in general — we’re focused on sharing all that our single connected solution does to help. It’s why we’ve put together resources like our vaccination infographic, which shares how Yardi EHR (our electronic health record solution) streamlines vaccine tracking and other key tasks. Ready to ease staff burden, improve resident health and keep your communities safe? Explore the infographic below to see how Yardi EHR does it all, helping you navigate COVID-19 and other infectious diseases: Stay informed with a comprehensive solution Yardi EHR is a full-service electronic health record solution for senior living providers. Built with several features that help you deliver the best care, this integrated solution offers an infection surveillance and immunization dashboard to help caregivers document — and monitor — essential information relating to COVID-19. Manage resident vaccinations Empower care staff Meet CDC guidelines Keep communities safe Learn how Yardi EHR benefits today’s providers With Yardi EHR, you’re equipped to schedule vaccinations, track appointments, record symptoms, chart collectively, monitor reactions and detect diseases — all from a single platform. Learn more about Yardi EHR. Start helping your residents today If you’re an existing Yardi EHR client, adding the infection surveillance and immunization dashboard couldn’t be easier. The implementation process is quick, efficient and seamless once you submit a case via Client Central (or by contacting your account manager). You’ll be set to manage initial vaccinations, track booster shots and more in no time....
Sound Advice
Managing Noise in Properties
Making sure all parties understand and follow the “right to quiet enjoyment” by resolving or preventing complaints about excessive noise can help keep satisfied occupants, a good reputation and filled commercial and residential properties. “Normal” noise includes talking, cooking and cleaning a property. Anything else, such as loud music, shouting, unruly visitors or dogs barking dogs past a certain time (usually 10 p.m.) and decibel threshold, has the potential to “lower the standards of the entire rental property and leave a landlord open to complaints from neighbors off the property, or file small claims for tolerating a nuisance,” along with spurring affected residents to seek court orders allowing them to leave without paying rent, says California legal firm Fast Eviction Service. With regard to commercial buildings, a gym that leases space in an office building, for example, could produce an unpleasant surprise for neighboring workers. “The onus is on the person leasing the space to do their homework before signing,” says Aercoustics, an acoustics, noise reduction and vibration control engineering firm in Mississauga, Canada. With the right preparation, noise issues can be managed. Steps that property managers can take to prevent or resolve unusual, excessive or unnecessary noise on a property include: Researching your city’s noise-related bylaws. Incorporating a noise clause into leases that defines the right to quiet enjoyment (an implied right in all 50 U.S. states), types of noise, noise limits, quiet hours and the consequences of lease violations. Making the subject of noise complaints aware of the problem and offering the opportunity to resolve them. Purchasing a decibel meter, which is inexpensive and provides an objective means to settle noise complaint disputes. Being aware of lightweight floors that enable sound to easily travel among rooms and levels in commercial spaces. Consulting...
Scam Alerts
Avoid these common traps
There are thousands of new scams every year, which can be challenging to keep up with them all. However, remember these few tips, and you can avoid most scams while protecting yourself and your family. Never send a wire transfer or gift card to someone you’ve never met. Wire transfers or gift cards act the same as cash does, which makes it impossible to trace. If someone is trying to convince you to pay this way, hang up and file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Avoid clickbait. Always think twice about an ad that pops up or clicking on links from an email. Clicking on a link will download malware onto your computer or smart device, allowing cyber thieves to steal your identity. Scammers are great a mimicking official seals, fonts, and other details. If you recognize the email but the message is off, delete, block, and report the email as a phish. If it is too good to be true, it probably is. This goes without explanation. Many scammers will offer a discount rate, offer all the added services then ask for money upfront. Never pay for a service upfront. Always check reviews and profiles at the Better Business Bureau to see what other people have experienced. Use extreme caution when dealing with someone online. Scammers will use social media, dating websites, Craigslist, and many other sites to reach potential targets. They can quickly feel like friends, which is part of the con for you to trusting them. Never share personal info. Again, this goes without explanation, but never give out your personal information, such as your banking information, birthdate, and social security numbers. Always read over invoices, and do not be intimidated when a scammer uses those scary tactics...
