Multifamily housing is changing more rapidly than ever before. The National Multifamily Housing Council recently released the Multifamily Disruption report. It highlights eight major trends that are changing the way we design and marketing apartments. 1. Robotics Tech research consultants at Gatner estimate that 26 billion devices will be connected through the cloud-based Internet of Things (IoT) by the year 2020. The five-fold increase includes more than 11 billion sensor-connected devices that control resident comfort, shopping, and entertainment. Investments in consumer artificial intelligence products may reach $126 billion by 2025. Residents have come to expect the integration of smart technology into their residences. Owners and operators are scrambling to integrate—and update— tech-savvy gadgets into rentals. 2. Convenient, Customizable Living Convenience reigns. Renters value reliable cellphone reception and high-speed internet more than fitness centers, pools, or in-unit laundry machines. By 2023, more than 90 percent of the U.S. population will own cellphones and use them as the main method of interaction with businesses and services. The 2017 State of the Connected Customer report advises businesses to focus on immediacy, personalization, consistency, and anticipation. If these expectations aren’t met, 66 percent of polled consumers say that they’ll drop the brand. About 70 percent of consumers say that mobile technology makes switching brands easier than ever. When it comes to apartments, this translates into a few major points. Cell reception and high-speed internet are must-haves. When renters reach out to leasing office staff, they expect quick, personalized responses. Moreso, they expect the leasing staff to anticipate their needs, promptly issuing updates and repairs before they’re requested. 3. Looking Beyond Millennials One-bedroom apartments are no longer the hottest floor plan in most markets. Larger apartments at affordable prices are consuming a greater share of demand. About 73 million...
The Future Is Now
According to Walter Cronkite
Editors’ note: Geneva Ives is the marketing writer for Point2, a leading provider of online marketing solutions for real estate professionals, including custom websites, syndication tools and prospecting utilities. She will be contributing technology-oriented real estate interest posts to The Balance Sheet. It’s no secret that the team at Point2 is a little home obsessed. We’ve been providing real estate marketing services for over a decade now; it’s fair to say we’ve seen a lot of properties (and housing trends) in that time. We recently encountered this house-centric blog post on Smithsonian.com that features video clips from the long-canceled CBS weekly documentary program entitled “The 21st Century.” The episode in question originally premiered on March 12, 1967. In it our host, legendary news anchor Walter Cronkite, escorts us around a vision of the single family home in the year 2001. Modern marvels abound – inflatable furniture, multicolored plastics, illuminated speakers. It’s a wonderland inspired by rapid advances in technology. That got us thinking: holy moly, the future is now! Decades past had such high aspirations for the year 2000 and beyond. Are we living up to the hype? To address this question, we decided to take a look at three specific rooms in the homes of today. How do they compare to their counterparts in homes of the 1960s? And how do they compare and contrast with the futuristic visions previewed by Mr. Cronkite? The Kitchen 1960s Trends: According to back issues of House Beautiful, contemporary eat-in kitchens celebrated saturated colors and wood cabinetry. 21st Century Predictions: The CBS writers of the day posited that we would enjoy irradiated foods, automated meal preparation and dishes that are molded on the spot in the 21st century. Clean up would be a snap. Dirty plates, complete...
Net-Zero Design
Ultimate energy efficiency
Architectural design and build are art forms of a functional sort, the kind that balance creativity with budget constraints. Perhaps if budgets weren’t an issue, there’d be nothing but beautiful, environmentally-friendly buildings. More realistically, sustainable design for the earth must also be sustainable for the company’s bottom line. According to Scientific American, homes and commercial buildings contribute to approximately 40 percent of the nation’s energy consumption, not to mention billions of dollars in energy costs for residential and commercial customers. By making more efficient buildings, the nation’s carbon footprint can reach new lows while saving consumers money. Pushing down development costs for such projects is the best way to achieve more widespread adoption of these techniques. Net-zero energy designs are models of such efficiency. These buildings are like miniature factories, producing enough renewable energy to fuel the inhabitants’ operations without drawing from the grid. In fact, net-zero buildings can even create a surplus of energy that is sold to energy providers or exchanged for credits. The concept has appealed to environmentally conscious designers and consumers throughout the nation. From 2005 to 2011, residential green building experienced an increase of 15 percent according to a McGraw-Hill Market survey. Communities such as Serenbe in north Georgia and Prairie Crossing of Illinois are among those that use sustainable building techniques, including LEED certification. They’ve also incorporated large amounts of preserved open space into their communities, and encourage residents to use alternative transportation. Builders KB Home, Shea Homes, and Nexus EnergyHomes jump started bi-coastal net-zero communities in eight states with notable success. In the commercial sector, there are 21 certified net-zero commercial buildings across the nation and another dozen in the marking. Universities are also on board. UC Davis’ West Village has reined in the power of zero-waste designs, and boasts that it is the largest net zero energy community in the country. Energy efficiency was improved 50 percent over existing standards thanks to innovative building, and the remaining power needs will be supplied by renewable sources, like a biodigester that will recycle waste into energy. While the population of net-zero buildings has grown markedly, it still represents a small fraction of new builds in the nation. Undoubtedly, these structures are capable of reducing carbon emissions and dependence on the grid. Indeed, occupants can bring their energy bills to zero, or better yet have the energy company paying them. So why hasn’t every design and build team across the nation jumped on the net-zero jet plane? The reasons are multifaceted but mainly circle back to the ever-present balance sheet. Net zero properties can be a tough sell. The buildings are only as efficient as their occupants. A multitude of small decisions each day help the building operate optimally: turning off even energy efficient appliances when not in use; maintaining water and waste recycling systems; and being aware of resource consumption. Getting the most out of net-zero buildings requires a conscious shift in mental processes. Firms recognize that traditional designs require less on the part of potential buyers, increasing the buildings’ marketability. Firms face a myriad of costly obstacles when building in different regions. In the Southeast, passive heating and envelope designs transform buildings into saunas. Advanced low-energy cooling systems increase costs in this region compared to other areas. Net-zero energy designs require spacious, flexible lots and ideally offer access to sunlight and cross breezes, all things that can be hard to come by in metropolitan areas. Firms with interest in energy efficient design must first overcome the challenge of keeping costs low, regardless of the location. Data from Inman News suggests that net-zero homes cost $30,000 to $40,000 to build, but those figures are on the rise along with construction costs as a whole. Perhaps the weight isn’t as heavy as it first seems. Projects by MoSA reveal that solar energy has become more accessible, dropping nearly 50 percent in recent years. Net-zero...
