As 2016 comes to a close, we look back in reflection on a successful year. Here are a few of our favorite Yardi moments from 2016: The Balance Sheet, Yardi’s corporate blog, celebrated its fourth anniversary! In February, Yardi launched a new data centre in Dubai to meet the data security and infrastructure needs of a growing client base in the Middle East. Yardi welcomed iMS Immobilien Management System GmbH to the Yardi family! iMS GmbH is a German developer of commercial property management software. CSU Channel Islands and Pacific Coast Business Times honored Yardi Systems and CEO Anant Yardi. Anant Yardi was named Business Leader of the Year by the Business & Technology Partnership at California State University, Channel Islands. Mr. Yardi was also inducted into the Pacific Coast Business Times Business Hall of Fame in recognition of his contributions to the software industry. Yardi aided displaced Fort McMurray fire evacuees. Mobilizing teams in four different time zones, Yardi created a centralized housing registry connecting local landlords and residents in need of housing. Yardi acquired Proliphix, a leading provider of energy control solutions. We welcomed its clients and staff to the Yardi family! Gordon Morrell was named Executive of the Year at the South Coast Business & Technology Awards. “I’m honored to receive this award, but it really is not for me,” Morrell said. “It is for the entire global team at Yardi. The reason for our success is the exceptional collaboration of everyone at the company, rather than the efforts of one individual.” Yardi won a NREI/IMN Commercial Real Estate Award in recognition of the Yardi®Smart Energy Suite. Multi-Housing News earned Gold for best website at NAREE’s fiftieth conference. In August, we celebrated 5,000 Yardi employees strong worldwide! Yardi released Yardi Genesis2for Affordable Housing. Yardi welcomed two new Marketing Geniuses. Meet Mia...

Last month, more than 700 real estate professionals converged on Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia for a week of learning from industry leaders and experts innovating the property sector. Hosted by Property Council of Australia, The Property Congress has become a highly anticipated annual event and the largest property conference in the region, boasting delegates from all corners of the industry – from lawyers and CEOs to architects and technology providers. For 39 years, Congress has kept the pulse of the industry and explored trends and topics impacting property and real estate. Members of our Yardi office in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia attended the three-day conference, including Ado van Rensburg and Kelvin Manual, regional solutions managers; Nina Kaszina, marketing manager; and Terry Gowan, regional director for Australia and New Zealand. On October 20, the event kicked off with a Welcome Beach Party hosted by Yardi. Delegates enjoyed beachside fire pits, live music, appetizers and beverages while networking on the picturesque Catseye Beach. Keynote addresses from Jacklyn Trad, Deputy Premier of Queensland and Mark Steinert, Managing Director and CEO of Stockland and National President of Property Council of Australia, welcomed delegates and focused on furthering innovation and development within Australia’s property sector. The first day of programming at Congress explored the transformative power that buildings have on communities and the property industry’s responsibility to address challenges through long range planning. Educational sessions and panels showcased industry hot topics and trends from some of the world’s most experienced business leaders. Morning sessions, including “New World Cities” and “Future Cities,” stressed the importance of thinking 10-15 years out ahead in the property sector. During the “New World Cities” keynote, Professor Greg Clark, Global Advisor and Chairman of The Business Cities Limited, discussed competition between the world’s existing and...

Voter registration and polling facilities are a hotbed of activity this fall. With slight additions to your active or vacant real estate property, you can benefit from the buzz. When it comes to transforming a property into a voter registration or polling center, nowhere has done it up like the hotels of Los Angeles. Several news outlets reported on luxury voting facilities popping up across the city. Among them is Luxe Hotel Sunset Boulevard. The hotel offered valet parking to make arrivals and departures easier for voters. Once inside, the soothing melodies of a harpist took the edge off of the commute. The elegant ambiance undoubtedly made the lamb chops and Chinese chicken salad taste even better. Those treats appeased voters while they waited in line. On their way home, voters picked up their “I voted” stickers at the dessert table loaded with delicacies. The stunning property (pictured, right) made a mark on the minds of guests.  Though the voters live locally, the social exposure makes the hotel a forerunning for voters’ future guests. Tim Miklaucic has voted at the Luxe Hotel twice now. “It’s unbelievable. It looks like a Beverly Hills spa resort,” he says. “You can’t even compare other polling places.” If you have a potential site, perhaps a vacant piece of real estate or an interesting space at an active site, there are companies that can transform it into a one-of-a-kind experience. Made in Lower East Side and Space in the Raw transform available real estate into satisfying, short-term commitments. Such companies facilitate permits, licenses, vendor contracts, event management, security—everything needed to host an event from start to finish. Though sites like the Luxe hotel have their own appeal, the presence of vendors is what sets the event apart. From musicians,...

If you’re at all involved with property marketing, you’ve probably been part of more than a few discussions about property marketing websites and their ability to convert prospects to leads and leads to leases. Great web conversions depend on your ability to truly understand your website visitors. How do they behave on your sites? What do they care about? How easy is it for them to get the information they need and take the next step? During this week’s Yardi Marketing Forum in Seattle, our very own Tudor Manole, development project manager for RentCafe, will lead a session that takes a deep dive into user behavior on property websites through analytics, user testing, and real-time recording. For those of us unable to be at the forum in person, here is a quick synopsis of his presentation, “Gold Star for Good Behavior,” as well as a few insights that you may be able put to work on your own sites to increase web conversions. At a glance, can you tell whether a website – in any industry – will convert or not? Yes and no. Great web conversions depend on the ability to craft a simple user experience that is intuitive, uncluttered, and can be navigated without instructions. So visibly, a straightforward site with a clear user journey is a great start. But there is other data we have to take into account to create a successful website too. What is user experience and why is it important? For a website to convert leads, it has to have a user experience that helps prospects complete the conversion process instead of abandoning the site. User experience (UX) design means observing user behavior in many different ways, and natural use of product is one that should not be...

Note: the following piece by Richard Gerritsen, Regional Director for Yardi European sales, was originally published in Property Week of Great Britain in June 2016. Reprinted with permission. It seems that almost anything is available to us now at the click of a mouse – or more often a tap on the screen of our phone. What is the population of Botswana? How do I get to my next meeting? Does the restaurant that I want to go to take bookings? Does it have good reviews? And where is best for a drink afterwards? It has become commonplace now to have all these questions answered almost instantly via mobile technology to the extent we now take it for granted. I may be showing my age, but I can remember a time when I used a physical map to find my way around; my daughter has never used one and wouldn’t know what to do with it. That makes me feel very old, but we must remember that this generation – which has grown up in a world that is contantly connected, where everything, it sometimes seems, has an app – is the one that is about to take over. Is the business world in general – and the property sector in particular – ready for this sea change? I’m not sure it is. Yes, there is innovation and a burgeoning proptech sector, but overwhelmingly the world of property remains firmly rooted in the old ways of doing things. If I want to buy a book or tickets to the theatre, all the information I need is just a few clicks away. Paper chase But if I’m an investor and I want to buy a £100m building, it is hard to get the information I...

LONDON – Industrial property has emerged as one of the strongest performing asset classes this year, apparently brushing off the threat of Brexit as consumers shop – or rather, click – until they drop. The rise of e-commerce means tenant demand is robust, with record rents being achieved in tightly-constrained urban areas where logistics space is competing with residential. However, occupiers are having to invest heavily in technology. In a continuing series of think tanks, Yardi brought together a panel of experts to discuss these issues in the European real estate market. Panelists: Claer Barrett, Financial Times – Chair Alan Holland, Business Unit Director, Greater London – Segro Richard Croft, Chief Executive – M7 Real Estate Mark Bowden, Partner – Caisson Investment Management Michael Williams, Investment Manager – M&G Real Estate Kevin Mofid, Research Director – Savills CB: The good news is that we’re seeing healthy yields and rental growth on industrial space, particularly in the Greater London area – but is this mainly because so much of it has vanished in the past decade? AH: The pressure on land for industrial and urban logistics is immense, particularly in areas of population concentration where developers like Segro are competing with house builders. According to the GLA, around 700 ha of industrial land has been lost in Greater London as places like Nine Elms, Old Oak Common and the Olympic Park ha ve become residential areas. That’s the equivalent of seven times the size of Regent’s Park – it’s gone and it won’t be replaced. KM: Since 2009, Savills research shows the supply of existing warehousing stock has decreased by 70 per cent. But at the same time, take-up has risen from a long-running average of 18m sq ft per year to 22m sq ft in the...

If you find waterfowl descending upon your property twice a year, you are not alone. There are thousands of multifamily properties just like you that are unfortunate enough to rest along waterfowl flyways. You are not alone. We are here to help. Unless you’re a hunter, you probably didn’t notice the release of the 2015 Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey. What you will want to know—and would probably figure out sooner than later—is that waterfowl are about to take over your world. The survey revealed that the estimated duck population in the US is 49.5 million. That’s 43 percent above the long-term average. For multifamily properties within the waterfowl migration path, that means that you will have an increase in residents between now and November. They will not give you rent money. Instead, they will block traffic each day with their adorable duck parades. They will ruin your residents’ picnics, chasing them for even the tiniest morsel of bread. (Those are likely spoiled harbor birds from New England. They can’t help themselves.) They will leave so much poop throughout your property that you will pray for more dogs. Each morning they will quack, quack, quack until you pull your hair out from the roots. What’s worse, residents and their kids may try to befriend the waterfowl. They may even try to pet them and swim with them. This can lead to the transfer of nasty parasites. You don’t have to be a victim of the pending waterfowl invasion. Take these measures to make their stay more bearable and maybe keep them from visiting altogether. Don’t feed the ducks or geese. As you may notice, pampered, entitled geese are the most insufferable geese. Secondly, human food is terribly unhealthy for waterfowl. Bread and crackers...

As much as we applaud new multifamily construction here on The Balance Sheet, we realize that it’s not good news for everyone. Owners of dated properties know that the new, shiny rentals up the street with the unbelievable move-in deals may create stiff competition. Fortunately, a few strategic updates can help your aging property feel fresh and appealing. Add your excellent rents and stellar onsite staff and those new properties won’t know what hit them. Take that, shiny new properties! Floors   Skip costly hardwoods and carpets that need to be replaced with every new lease. Instead, opt for porcelain tiles. There are plenty on the market now that give the look and feel of hardwoods with even fewer care requirements. Just be sure to shop around; there are affordable options that look just as great as high end products that would break the bank. Kitchen & Bath Give aging cabinets a new breath of life with a fresh coat of paint and trendy new hardware. White and gray paints leave kitchens and baths feeling crisp, clean, and modern. As for hardware, keep the designs sleek and simple—and avoid anything shiny. Thanks to a growing appreciation for all things old school (an heirloom left to us by the hipsters) even old tile can look intentionally chic. The secret is in the grout. Tiles look dated when the grout is stained and disintegrating. Re-grout tiled areas and take the opportunity to replace any cracked or chipped tiles. New grout costs a lot less than completely renovating a bath or backsplash. While minimalist design looks great in magazines, most renters will admit that they have stuff and that stuff needs a home—like drawers and cabinets. Give bathrooms an ultra modern feel with cityscape cabinetry. These cabinets...