In the Fall YASC 2013 opening session, Yardi’s Bryant Shoemaker urged every attendee of Yardi’s largest ever user conference to meet at least 10 other Yardi clients during the event. “You’re going to go to the classes and learn things but you can learn more from all the other people here,” said Shoemaker. After a full day of classes and a great reception, you’re probably well on your way to meeting those 10 people. But to enhance Shoemaker’s excellent suggestion, we have a list of 10 things you can do at YASC today that will greatly enhance the value that you bring home from the conference. (And a few are fun, too!) Here they are: 1. Get up to date on Voyager 7S. Yardi’s signature property management software is now browser and device agnostic. “We love it. It’s awesome,” said one Yardi client from a Southern California-based multifamily firm who has already implemented the latest Voyager version. 2. Bring back a gift for your leasing or maintenance staff with knowledge about Yardi’s mobile apps. Yardi Leasing Pad is the tablet-based solution for signing up prospects from anywhere, and it’s available for multifamily and commercial. Maintenance teams can work faster and more efficiently with Yardi Maintenance for Mobile, giving them the ability to receive work orders and report back on progress while on the go. 3. Optimize and improve your business intelligence. Check out Yardi Orion for Business Intelligence which uses your Yardi Voyager operating, financial, and ancillary data to provide real estate specific business intelligence, document management and portals. The new customizable dashboards are easy to set up and offer the ideal at-a-glance overview. 4. One of the most exciting sessions we attended yesterday featured Yardi’s eLearning platform. Perfect for training your team, this...

Welcome to our first day of sessions at the Fall Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference (YASC) 2013, held this year in Anaheim, Calif. Our staff is thrilled to be here with more than 1,450 representatives of our valued Yardi clients, making this our biggest conference ever. Thank you for your attendance and making that record possible! Our goal for the next three days is to help you learn as much about our Yardi products as possible, and send you home from this great event armed with information that you can share with your on-site and administrative Yardi users. We’re also anxious to hear your feedback about our products, support and development process – it’s listening and responding to insight from our customers that has allowed Yardi Systems to be one of the real estate industry’s technology leaders for over 30 years. This morning, we’ll be beginning the day with a keynote address from Yardi founder and CEO Anant Yardi. He’ll tell us about the direction of the company and identify key industry trends that everyone in real estate management should be  aware of. Many clients have told us that they look to these remarks from Anant as a valuable guide for their business technology needs, so don’t miss the General Session beginning at 8:30 a.m. It will be followed by breakout overview sessions focusing on specific verticals, so you can learn about the hottest new Yardi deliverables for your industry. After that, we’re off to the races with over 200 courses that will be held through Friday midday. You should already be signed up for your selected classes prior to arrival, but if you need any assistance, simply visit the registration desk, where you can get all of your questions answered. In the midst of...

For the first time, the Fall Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference will be held outside of Santa Barbara, Calif. this fall. The host hotel for Fall YASC 2013 will be the Hilton Anaheim, located in central Orange County near the Anaheim Convention Center and the Disneyland Resort. YASC dates are Wednesday to Friday, October 9-11. Yardi clients come to YASC to focus on advanced software training, helpful product knowledge, and to benefit from industry peer collaboration opportunities. They also deliver invaluable input to the Yardi development team on needed improvements and enhancements across Yardi’s diverse product line. Courses held during the two and a half day event focus on a variety of specialties. YASC attendees include executives, IT professionals, marketers, property managers and trainers. Your company must hold a current Yardi contract in order to attend YASC. In addition to the solid work and training that takes place at the conference,  we wanted to share a few nearby Anaheim opportunities for our clients and guests to enjoy themselves while visiting Orange County. There are myriad attractions that bring millions of visitors to the area each year, including one known all over the world – Disneyland. Here are a few of the recommendations made by Anaheim locals and visitors: Entertainment Disneyland, Downtown Disney, and other Disney-related attractions: Anaheim is ubiquitously associated with the Disney experience, and it is possible to get a feel for the California iteration of the “Happiest Place on Earth” without spending a full day at the park. There is plenty of shopping, dining and entertainment associated with Downtown Disney District, which is free to browse and enjoy, and within walking distance of the Hilton. We know that a few attendees are bringing along their families so they can enjoy Disneyland or California...

If you are joining us for our upcoming Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference in Anaheim, Calif., from Oct. 9-11, you can look forward to an experience that will be packed with value. From the course sessions, which are tailored to your corporate needs, to the chance to troubleshoot Yardi issues one-on-one in the computer lab, to networking and learning from your peers, there’s something for everyone at our bi-annual conference. Held for the first time this year in Anaheim, our entire conference team looks forward to meeting you and engaging productively to help you better use our software and systems. At the conclusion of each conference (events are held annually on the East Coast in the spring and on the West Coast in the fall), attendees are asked to review the speakers and teachers who led their classes. Thanks to their invaluable feedback, we were able to seek out some of the top Yardi experts who you may encounter at YASC. Thanks to their insight and contributions, we’re able to share a quick primer on some of the recommendations they have for you during your time at YASC, and we hope you’ll have a chance to check out their classes!   Dwayne Jordan Class everyone should take: “Tenant Ledgers is probably a good one. Everyone is going to have tenant ledgers, regardless of the market they are in. That’s a good class to help them troubleshoot some of those basic issues that everybody has.” What he’s teaching in October: Advanced recoveries, advanced lease administration, reporting and other features, retail calculations and reporting. (Commercial.) Why he’s a strong teacher: “I interact with clients as much as I can, stay upbeat and keep them on a good pace so they can ask questions and don’t feel uncomfortable...

The 2013 NAA Education Conference & Exposition is just around the corner. Next week at this time I’ll be in sunny San Diego, listening to the wisdom of business virtuosos like Richard Branson, Erik Wahl, and Bert Jacobs. If Lauren Boston is right, I may see a few tears shed into lunch napkins. For me, NAA is a big deal because it will be my first chance to represent my company outside our self-hosted conferences, and I want to make the most of it. Perhaps the experience will be similar for you. Conferences can be invaluable learning experiences, but they do require an investment of resources to attend.  If you’re the only attendee for your company, you want to return to work with knowledge gained, providing value for your colleagues and clients.  But there’s so much to do and just two days to accomplish it, so where to start? Here are 4 steps I’m taking to make the most of my first NAA I hope you’ll consider sharing what steps you’ve taken too. Prepare goals and questions. What are you hoping to get out of the conference? If you’re representing an office, what would your colleagues hope to learn if they were going? What solutions, on-site or in-office are you hoping to identify this year?  Create a list and make that a focus while you’re there. It will help give you conversation topics during networking events, as well as help keep you focused as you move through the expo center and sessions. Created a schedule.  There are loads of resources for doing this throughout the NAA website and the App.  If one of the solutions you’re looking for deals with revenue management then make time at 9:00am Thursday for “Integrating a Revenue Management System...

As YASC DC 2013 draws to a close, clients depart with a greater understanding of what Yardi has to offer and much more. Longstanding clients connected with newcomers, providing mentorship opportunities and an unofficial forum for best practices. Clients connected with their Yardi contacts, building friendships and broadening lines of communication.   Perhaps most importantly, though, clients from across the globe were able to give their feedback to Yardi developers, paving the way for products that are a reflection of clients’ needs. As one client participant told us during the conference: “I can’t reiterate how good it was to know that Yardi was listening to our suggestions and making changes to improve products. Does it get any better than making a good product better?” Yardi’s desire to listen and respond promotes better product development, but it also serves a greater purpose. Company receptivity builds client confidence. In turn, that confidence can result in the investments needed to trigger multiple facets of international business growth. This year’s conference experienced a 30 percent increase in attendance from 2012. It’s a glowing sign that businesses are gearing up for positive change and more efficient practices. As the economy recovers, multiple industries are seeing a surge in business, the long-awaited catalyst needed to propel growth. YASC has helped Yardi’s clients prepare for that wave of change and the success that follows in its wake. Across all of our diverse product lines, Yardi software prepares clients to press forward with the confidence that they need to ensure wise investments, adequate planning, and effortless organization across all levels. The fully integrated and highly configurable products take an individualized approach to business growth. This year, managing that growth has become easier than ever. Embracing the mobile age, clients are furnished with the...

Changes and updates are on the horizon for many Yardi verticals. Many of today’s sessions prepared attendees for software updates and industry changes that will affect the way that they do business. Voyager 6 to 7S: A small step forward with many benefits With excitement brewing about the recent release of Yardi Voyager 7S, many YASC attendees were interested in learning the differences between Voyager 7S and its predecessor, Voyager 6. While it will not be a jolting conversion for most clients, there were several key changes that make the user experience more efficient and pleasurable. Project Manager Ami Kerns walked class participants through the highlights. -Users now have a new menu search bar, Favorites and History at their fingertips -Designated users can search the back end of the database, making most objects and columns searchable. -Search results now appear on a tidy pop-up window that doesn’t interfere with information and menus displayed on the page initially views. Users may now navigate through multiple screens at the same time without access to Ctrl+N—which is excellent for on tablets and devices without Control features -Voyager 6 has been rewritten using .NET, creating convenient tabs  and links for features that users utilize most -Designated users may gain access to posted batches and edit their details -PayScan 12.1 is compatible with 7S display type securities -7S allows users to enter multiple tax values for one object, then have those tax values auto-populate according to the specific GL account, expense account, or the payable account -Users can customize how payments are divided -Prepayments can be made on a non-zero receipt and multiple pre-pays can be issued on a single receipt batch -Periodic invoicing available with customizable fields Getting Revved-up for HUD Updates “Does everyone have all of the...

L&B Realty Advisors has been named one of Dallas Morning News’ Top 100 Places to Work for the second consecutive year. The company received accolades for its stellar work environment and nurturing relationship with clients. The success of Yardi client L&B starts from within. The company’s culture statement reads, “There is a FORCE that drives L&B. It is the connection of our people, their careers and our clients.” That FORCE—flexible, ownership, relevance, connected, empowered—unites teammates to create an atmosphere that is professional, innovative, effective and fun; the FORCE reference naturally led employees to select Yoda as their mascot. Those who uphold the FORCE host a miniature version of the Star Wars sage on their desk for a few weeks. It’s a simple way to keep the FORCE alive among employees each day. Employees’ balanced approach to business and interpersonal skills has served them well thus far. Since 1965, L&B Realty Advisors has provided real estate and asset management services to institutional and private investors. Services assist clients with the acquisition, management, and disposition of assets as well as pension plans, public and private wealth funds, endowments, and foundations for investors. L&B prides itself on longstanding client relationships, many of which average 17 years with returns that exceed benchmark forecasts. Currently, the company manages more than $5.4 billion on behalf of its clients. One successful project, a series of new developments at Tyson Corner Center in Washington, D.C., is an L&B real estate holding with a promising future. The project consists of mixed-use facilities that furnish the neighborhood with over three million square feet of combined hotel, retail and residential space. The site has been propelled into the spotlight by the adjacent mall, which holds anchor tenants such as Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor, Macy’s, L.L....

Yardi Systems offers multi-day intensive training courses for its clients who use Yardi products to do business every day. Known as the Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference – YASC – this year the gatherings take place in Anaheim, Calif. in the fall and Washington, D.C. in the spring. On May 21, YASC D.C. 2013 kicks off at the Washington Hilton with a welcoming address from Yardi founder and president Anant Yardi. Over 1200 attendees – a conference attendance record – will then  head  into two days of intensive classes that will focus on specific aspects of using Yardi software. The goal is to help our valued clients do their jobs smarter and more efficiently. YASC attendees include day-to-day users of Yardi systems,  corporate management, property owners and institutional investors. Course selections are based on requests from clients and feedback from past events. Click the links below for details on the dynamic Yardi products that will be demonstrated in Washington: Yardi Orion™ for SharePoint® (Multifamily, Commercial, and Investment Management) RentCafe™ (Multifamily) Yardi Leasing Pad™ (Multifamily and Commercial) Mobile Solutions (Multifamily and Commercial) Yardi Commercial CRM™ (Commercial) Yardi Advanced Budgeting & Forecasting™ (Commercial and Investment Management) Yardi Investor CRM™ (Investment Management) According to Bryant Shoemaker, who has been going to YASCs since the conferences began: “People come to YASC to learn how other people use the software, how to use it more efficiently, and to get tips from Yardi staff.  Maybe they have some parts of the software they would like to run smoother so they can get ideas on how to do that. Maybe they’re implementing a new version or module and want to hit the ground running,  The conference provides an opportunity to focus on increasing productivity without the distractions of everyday  office duties.  Networking...

During the last two days at YASC, it’s been a privilege to interact with so many Yardi Systems clients, some who have been with us for multiple decades, and others who are relatively new users of our products. We’ve talked with you about your businesses, your plans, your hopes and dreams for the future, and of course your real estate technology needs. During these conversations, we noticed one consistent theme – a theme that was introduced by our founder and CEO Anant Yardi during his remarks in Wednesday’s General Session. That theme is change. No matter what sector of the property management or investment market your business operates in, change seems to be ubiquitous right now. Our multifamily clients are seeing their businesses grow and thrive with the national resurgence in apartment renting. Our commercial and investment clients are continuing to recover from a down market and adopting bold new business strategies to improve their returns. There is an exciting new market sector comprised of single family home rental portfolios. Our affordable and public housing clients are seeking ways for technology to help them work more efficiently. Senior housing clients are seeing major growth in their market as the Baby Boomers plan for retirement. And our military and student housing providers continue to improve their processes to serve unique resident needs. Across these verticals, everyone is looking for ways that technology can help them be more nimble, mobile, efficient and automated. And there is growing recognition that data collected in your daily operations can help you work smarter when it is collected, organized, and analyzed in near real-time to answer questions and solve problems. During his remarks on Wednesday, Anant Yardi took a look back at the vast changes in technology we’ve all watched...

The Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference (YASC), Santa Barbara edition, got off to a great start on October 17,  2012. The sold-out conference is attended by Yardi clients and consultants from around the globe,  from company executives to on-site property management staff. You can also find us over on the new YASCInfo site, along with Tweets and photos from the day. Bookmark it now! As we kick off our coverage, let’s set the scene. Yardi staff and guests are gathered at the Fess Parker Doubletree Resort on the beautiful Santa Barbara waterfront for today’s General Session. Affordable Housing, PHA, Senior Housing and Condo/Co-op/HOA courses are taking place at the Hyatt Santa Barbara just a short walk away. The Doubletree will also be the location for the evening events (networking reception tonight, gala reception and dinner tomorrow), and you can find Yardi sales professionals and expert technical staff ready to assist you at any time in the sales booth area or the Internet lab, located in the Reagan Room. Attendees are here to learn how to best use our Yardi product offerings, get one-on-one technical assistance, learn what new and exciting updates and products are coming in the next year, network with industry colleagues and more.. Spending time with our clients, learning from and sharing knowledge with you is part of our core value set at Yardi Systems. 8:30 a.m. – Good morning! So thrilled to be here with everyone. It’s an absolutely beautiful day here in Santa Barbara. Apparently someone at Yardi ordered up the perfect week of weather for this year’s YASC. Well done! Today’s conference began with the General Session address from Yardi CEO and founder Anant Yardi and vertical updates from Bryant Shoemaker, Rob Teel, John Pendergast, Dan Campbell, and Mark Livanec....

New and newly upgraded Yardi mobile applications will be front and center this week at YASC SB. When we talk to Yardi clients about ways to improve their real estate-based businesses, and how technology can help, they never fail to mention the desire for new mobile applications that will let employees work more efficiently and businesses run more smoothly. Mobile technology has transformed how we run our personal lives. Shouldn’t it change our businesses, too? Here’s a quick users guide to the various mobile apps now available from Yardi Systems: Leasing Pad – If you are anxious to use Yardi Voyager in a tablet-optimized environment, then Leasing Pad is for you. Users will be able to access contact, lead, lease, resident, and property data in Voyager using Leasing Pad, so leasing agents and managers can work on the go or anywhere on the property using a tablet device.  Leasing Pad also offers the full functionality of the Yardi PopCard CRM, property marketing portals, and online leasing.  Access Voyager dashboards with leasing and operations info, as well as residential analytics, all from your iPad or tablet. Leasing Pad is browser agnostic. Yardi CRM Mobile – During the leasing process, every day a unit sits empty costs you money. Yardi CRM Mobile will help streamline leasing by automating the process. Prospect and customer contact information and history are tracked in Voyager and synced with Outlook throughout the leasing process, from first contact to final signing. Access to crucial data is always within reach when it is on the mobile device that never leaves your side. Lease abstracts can also be run from Yardi CRM Mobile, available for iPhone and iPad. Yardi Inspection Mobile – When you’re in the field inspecting properties, the last thing you want...

Whether you are a first time Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference (YASC) attendee or have been to the event many times over, there’s much to learn and gain from the next few days.  You’re surely arriving in Santa Barbara with your own business and training needs in mind, and Yardi’s foremost priority over the next few days is to send you home more knowledgeable then you were when you arrived. (We want you to have a good time, too.) But after you’ve gotten your questions answered, there’s still so much more to learn. Here are our best bets for the time you’ll spend with us at the Fess Parker Doubletree Resort. Find the full schedule of conference events here. Have a specific question about what classes you should take? Just ask at the registration desk. No. 1: Company overview and update: general session with Anant Yardi (Wednesday morning). The Yardi Systems Founder and CEO delivers a comprehensive outlook on the real estate software industry, what’s trending right now, and Yardi’s responsive product offerings. Every seat in the room will be filled for this insight. No. 2: Leasing Pad demo: You won’t want to miss this look at the new, now fully available Leasing Pad, which YASC attendees in Washington D.C. got a sneak peek at earlier this year. Users will be able to access Voyager functionality for guest cards and availability through Leasing Pad, giving you pertinent data at your fingertips while working with prospects anytime, anywhere. Yardi PopCard is also integrated, allowing for easy lead tracking. Leasing Pad and Yardi’s other exciting mobile offerings will be front and center at the conference this week, so stay tuned for more mobile news and insight over the next several days. No. 3: Orion for Sharepoint: This all-encompassing...

Commercial clients attending this week’s Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference in Santa Barbara can focus on maximizing business efficiency when selecting from a comprehensive track of classes. One of many exciting new lead and lease focused applications from Yardi Systems that will be introduced is Yardi Commercial CRM™, which offers commercial real estate professionals the ability to streamline and even shorten the leasing cycle. Cutting down the time spent on property lease up is crucial for commercial property owners and leasing professionals in order to enhance revenues and minimize unit turnover time. Kim Maddox, Commercial Product Specialist for Yardi Systems, explains how you can save the carrying cost of vacant space by shortening the leasing cycle. “For example, let’s say you rent on average 2500 square feet at $37 per square foot.  If you shorten the leasing cycle by three weeks for one lease, you will accelerate $5,336.54 of additional rental revenue on that lease. What factors will help reduce the cycle time?  Examples include saving a leasing agent’s time, easy access to information (available space, existing leases, encumbrances, budget, prior rent and market rent), tenant communication logging, tracking activities and events, facilitating proposal generation, counter-proposals and approvals, facilitating lease drafts and approvals, facilitating floor plan generation and approval, facilitating transmission and approval of construction documents, construction budgets and facilitating tenant build-out.  There is much to be gained through the use of an integrated system to accelerate this process,” Maddox said. Among the features of Yardi Commercial CRM: Prospect and customer contact information is centralized in Yardi Voyager™ and contact history is tracked throughout the leasing process, from first contact to final signing. Integration with Microsoft Outlook and Yardi CRM Mobile means you need never be out of reach of key client data. Automate the...

Whether you are a veteran of multiple Yardi Advanced Solutions Conferences or are attending your first in Santa Barbara this month, there is something for everyone at YASC. Scheduled for Oct. 17-19 at Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort in Santa Barbara, YASC is an opportunity for Yardi clients to learn about the latest and greatest things Yardi products can do for them, train in-depth on the software that serves your business, and troubleshoot any technical glitches with the help of on-site Yardi personnel. While just about all Yardi employees contribute to YASC in some way, whether by teaching classes at the event, producing and supporting the products presented, or assisting clients onsite, no one does more than planners Nancy Bogg and Anna Markman, who work year round to ensure that both YASCs are a success. From details like the type of food service that will be provided – the Santa Barbara conference will move to a buffet lunch this year – to what classes are scheduled, Nancy and Anna handle all of the coordination necessary to produce a fantastic event. Their mission is to leave send YASC clients and attendees home better trained, informed, and less hungry and thirsty than they were when they arrived. If you happen to get a bit of a tan while lunching outside under sunny Santa Barbara October skies, all the better! We asked for a few first timer tips geared toward those attending what can sometimes be an overwhelming event for a first time attendee. There’s such scope and breadth to the information being presented that it can be hard to know what to focus on if you don’t have a set plan in mind. 1. Don’t hesitate to ask for help. “It might feel overwhelming because there’s a...

Life moves way too fast. The same can be said for the Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference. For three days next week, real estate industry professionals will gather in Santa Barbara, Calif. to learn everything they can about the latest Yardi software offerings for their vertical. New products will be announced and demonstrated, the inside track on forthcoming updates will be revealed, and secrets may circulate. This website: yascinfo.com,  is where you can glean some of that insight without being onsite, and the only place where conference news will be shared real time. We’ll be feeding the posts we write here on The Balance Sheet directly onto this site, and there will be photos, Twitter feed updates, and more. Even veteran conference attendees say that it is near impossible to keep up with the flow of information that will be delivered at YASC, no matter how many classes you attend. “It’s overwhelming,” says a veteran of many of these events. “You want to be there because there’s so much to learn, but every session will have an impact and you simply can’t go to them all.” Don’t leave YASC without a full picture of what happened. Come back to yascinfo.com daily during the conference, so you don’t miss out on any of the real scoop that you won’t get anywhere...

The city is the place to be, both for trendy apartment dwellers, who are choosing skyscrapers over suburbs, and the businesses and residences that will serve them. As a result, cities nationwide are experiencing an increase in urban infill projects. The developments sprout between existing buildings, filling gaps or replacing run-down, outdated or unsafe structures. What they may lack in square footage they make up for in accessibility, eyesore reduction, and green features. Such developments have been generally received enthusiastically by city planners, neighborhood committees, and consumers alike. Square footage isn’t always an issue. Once a wondrous architectural feat, the 2 million square-foot Sears, Roebuck  & Co. building in Atlanta, Ga., became a gargantuan scuff mark on Ponce de Leon Avenue. As it accumulated a collection of graffiti, broken windows and squatters, few foresaw that the behemoth would soon regain its status as an icon in the Southeast. The largest brick structure in the region is being reborn as Ponce City Market, a mixed-use development. The news has drummed up positive buzz throughout Atlanta and beyond. Planners, relieved that the site will no longer serve as a harbor for illegal activity, can’t wait to witness the building’s transformation into an active hub of commerce. Hip young renters are snagging the lofts of the upper floors, without even waiting to see renderings of the designs. Eco-minded urbanites are excited to see the structure built on previously developed land; they’re nearly ecstatic about how much of the current structure will be recycled. Foodies and shoppers have literally popped open champagne bottles as commercial spaces fill. Similar stories are happening throughout the United States. Even smaller cities, like Santa Barbara, Calif., are seeing an influx of infill. The coastal SoCal tourism destination is seeing previously stalled projects...

So first, the bad news .. the Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference (YASC), coming up in Santa Barbara, Calif. from Oct. 17 to 19, is already sold out. Nearly 1,000 Yardi users from around the nation will gather at Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort on Santa Barbara’s beautiful waterfront to receive training and updates on the latest Yardi product releases, learn about new solutions for their real estate-based businesses, and network with fellow industry professionals. There will be 182 courses offered. Twelve years ago, the first-ever YASC featured 30 courses and 150 people attended. Since then, the event has grown rapidly and is considered one of the best ways to get hands-on training on Yardi software. Those in attendance will not only interact closely with Yardi staff who can help address any technical challenges, but will also enjoy beautiful southern California fall weather and the gorgeous oceanfront views of the Doubletree Rotunda during outdoor lunches and evening mixers. If they have any free time, visitors might try some of Santa Barbara’s delightful local restaurants, outdoor activities and sightseeing. Held biannually on the East and West Coasts, the Santa Barbara-based YASC will be held away from the Central Coast for the first time in 2013, when the West Coast event will be held in Anaheim, Calif. from Oct. 9-11. The trial location offers easy access to LA-area airports and nearby attractions like Disneyland, and allows for a larger number of conference attendees. The East Coast event will continue to be based at the Washington Hilton from May 21-23, 2013. If you missed out on getting registered in time to attend the Santa Barbara YASC, we’ll look forward to seeing you at one of the 2013 events. But you can also follow along with all the happenings at...

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...

We’re back for another great day of learning and insight at YASC DC 2012. Everyone seems very excited for another full day of training and opportunities to meet with Yardi experts and fellow real property professionals. Miss any of our Day One highlights? Check out the full Tuesday recap. Hopefully you’ve had a chance to break away from the busy conference schedule to check out some of the beautiful Washington D.C. neighborhoods right outside the Hilton. I took a quick run around Dupont Circle and over to Georgetown early this morning, and happened upon the Old Stone House, which was built in 1766 and is the only surviving pre-Revolutionary War building in the capital. The house, which was built by Christopher Layman, sits on one of the first 80 lots that were surveyed in the Port of Georgetown in 1751. 260 years later, it’s down the block from an American Apparel. This simple two story home, with a beautiful garden in the back, is a great example of how real estate is one of those universal points of interest, no matter what industry vertical you represent or where you may travel. What’s the most interesting building you’ve seen in D.C. so far? The blocks around Dupont Circle are comprised of beautiful older homes with stately architecture. They’re interspersed with embassies representing countries from around the world. *** 8:30 a.m. – Heading into our first round of sessions this morning, there’s a very diverse selection of offerings to choose from, many focusing on solving particular technical challenges relevant to your vertical. In the “Evaluating Your Business Processes,” Yardi Atlanta GM Don Rogers is leading an open flow discussion that aims to brainstorm solutions to participants’ unique business problems. So far the conversation has centered around...