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Asset Management, LIHTC, Multifamily Lending, TCAM Services

Finding the Right Asset Management Data System for your Organization

asset_management_data_system-resized-600Are you an owner-developer or investor of multifamily rental properties who spends a considerable amount of time inputting financial and operational data into Excel spreadsheets or another basic system in order to perform asset management functions? Do you wish that you could devote less time, resources and manpower to collect property data for high level asset management purposes?

 

Industry standard asset management for owners and funders requires expert and experienced staff and the right policies and procedures. However, particularly for capital providers with growing portfolios, data collection and management systems have become a third integral part of the process.

 

TCAM executives have decades of experience working with a variety of asset management data systems, which includes exposure to off-the-shelf solutions, home-grown programs and third-party providers. We also have experience with the leading data providers in today’s market and help our clients identify systems that meet their particular needs.

 

If you need assistance finding an asset management data systems solution for your organization, contact us at Steve Spall (sspall@tcamre.com) or Allen Feliz (afeliz@tcamre.com) — (617) 542-1200.

Federal Housing Programs

U.S. Government Reopens & RAD Extended

us_government_reopens-resized-600After a 16-day standoff, the United States Congress passed and the President signed into law the reopening of thefederal government and the raising of the nation’s debt ceiling.

The government will be funded through January 15 and the debt ceiling will be raised through February 15. Among other items, this Continuing Resolution authorizes the extension of the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program.

RAD allows financing tools to be applied to at-risk public and assisted housing and has two components:

  1. Public Housing and Moderate Rehabilitation properties to convert, under a competition limited to 60,000 units, to long-term Section 8 rental assistance contracts;
  2. Rent Supplement (Rent Supp), Rental Assistance Payment (RAP), and Mod Rehab properties to convert tenant-based vouchers issued upon contract expiration or termination to project-based assistance.

For the full text of the CR Bill:         The CR Bill

 

For the latest updates on the reopening of the federal government and the impact on housing programs, contact us at Steve Spall (sspall@tcamre.com) or Allen Feliz (afeliz@tcamre.com) or (617) 542-1200.
Affordable Housing Asset Management, Solar Asset Management, TCAM News

TCAM Announces New Affiliation with Solar Energy Asset Manager

BOSTON, MA – TCAM announced today its affiliation with Radian Generation LLC (RadianGEN), a solar energy asset manager that provides services for owners of solar projects. RadianGEN was established by seasoned solar industry executives with deep experience in solar project development, acquisition, finance, operation and management. RadianGEN focuses on the growing market of commercial, residential and utility-scale solar power plants, many of which were financed with tax credit equity. Services include technical asset management services, financial asset management services, advisory diligence services, and work out services for underperforming solar assets.

“RadianGEN’s deep experience will expand the services TCAM and its affiliates can offer to capital providers in the tax credit industry,” said TCAM CEO Jenny Netzer.  “We look forward to working with our former colleagues from MMA Renewable Ventures to help clients improve the performance of their solar as well as housing portfolios.”

Chad Sachs, CEO of RadianGEN, added: “The solar sector has matured to a point where it now has the same servicing needs that the affordable housing sector and real estate in general has had for decades.   Our affiliation with TCAM will allow us to bring the best practices from those sectors to the solar sector.”

TCAM provides asset management and consulting services for capital providers in the affordable housing and tax credit industries. Through 2012, TCAM has provided services to clients for over 800 properties containing 120,000 apartment units in 46 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, representing in excess of $5.5 billion of client capital.

Media Contact: Allen Feliz
p: 617.542.1200; afeliz@tcamre.com; f: 617.542.1225

Learn more about these companies:

Visit Radian Generation

Asset Management, LIHTC, Multifamily Lending, TCAM Services

Best Practices in Asset Management

tcam-steve-spallDespite the recent economic downturn, the majority of rental housing properties have performed well, and most are continuing to do so.

However, in the absence of a strong and speedy economic recovery coupled with potential further stresses to rental housing markets — including higher interest rates, less real estate tax exemptions and even declining federal rental assistance — effective management is more important than ever.

The following illustrates a couple of ways effective property and asset management can help owners and funders of rental housing to not only weather the storm but also help maximize the value of their assets.

Look Beyond Physical Occupancy

Owners and investors typically describe the performance of their housing portfolios by citing average physical occupancy among other factors. While the number of occupied apartments provides some indication of the health of the asset, it’s only one component of total rental revenue. High physical occupancy might be a good indicator but only if all (or most) of the tenants are paying their rents in full, which is often not the case. Asset managers seeking to understand the full economic benefit of occupied units also need to know if any tenants are delinquent on their rent payments which may lead to write-offs or bad debt; and, if any tenants are paying discounted rents due to move-in specials or other types of concessions. Particularly in challenged markets with declining rents and families unable to keep up with their rent payments, economic occupancy calculations are much more useful analyzing and managing revenue.

 

Going Beyond the Basics to Control Operating Expenses

Housing developments in struggling markets, for which even strong operators are unable to increase rents or occupancy, require asset managers to devote more time on the expense side to help improve or maintain overall financial performance. Controlling costs requires more than the common year-to-date actual vs. budget and year-over-year analyses.

The following questions suggest strategies that go beyond the basics for exploring ways to minimize operating costs:

  1. Are overall per unit expenses in line with other multifamily rental properties, of comparable age and type, in the owner’s portfolio and the local area?
  2.  Is the owner contracting the right vendors?
  3. Are there any opportunities to conduct bulk purchases across the owner’s portfolio?
  4. Are there any opportunities to perform quick and inexpensive (“low-hanging fruit”) energy efficiency upgrades?

 

Other key management best practices include understanding the local market, hiring and retaining talented site and regional management staff and fostering a strong sense of community at the housing developments in order to attract and keep residents.

Both in the face of possible continuing economic and market challenges and to maximize asset values, experienced and focused management remains vital for capital providers. To learn more about how to proactively manage your portfolios and create additional value, contact Steve Spall (sspall@tcamre.com) at TCAM at (617) 542-1200.
Federal Housing Programs

Government Shutdown: What is the Impact on Affordable Housing?

government_shutdown-resized-600The impact of the government shutdown on affordable property operations is not likely to be immediate or widespread.

Nonetheless, the impact could be very serious for individual properties and the owners who manage them. Both the extent and severity of the impact will increase if a federal budget is not passed within the next four weeks.

Outlook:

In the short-term, the primary impact will be on properties that have contracts up for renewal or have issues that require attention from HUD staff. Longer-term, the availability of funds for all rental subsidy programs is uncertain.

The affordable housing industry is relying on the HUD FY2013 Contingency Plan for Possible Lapse in Appropriations issued on September 25, which indicates that prior year appropriations will be used to fund rental subsidy programs (incl. Section 8 and public housing), however, it remains unclear how much funding is available for tenant vouchers relative to project-based contracts and the potential effects of the shutdown on HUD’s ability to efficiently deploy the funds to the housing agencies that directly provide the subsidies to the properties.

Various sources, including housing authority executives, have informed us that all rental subsidies will be funded during the month of October but if a budget is not passed before November, they are not sure if funds will be available beyond October for any program — vouchers, PBS8 contracts or public housing operating subsidies.

 

What are we doing?

TCAM is monitoring ongoing events such as how subsidies are handled by housing authorities and other administrators and the potential impact on available funds in the event of a prolonged shutdown. To learn more about how the shutdown might affect your portfolio contact Steve Spall (sspall@tcamre.com) or Allen Feliz (afeliz@tcamre.com) at TCAM at (617) 542-1200.

Asset Management, Industry Conferences

3 Key Points: IMN Real Estate CFO Forum

I attended the IMN Real Estate CFO Forum in New York, NY and moderated a panel on restructures and refinancing this morning.

 

screen_shot_2013-09-30_at_9.52.57_am-resized-600

The major takeaways of the panel:

  1. Now is the time to address problem assets as conditions are better than they have been in the past or are likely to be in the future
  2. Banks are more likely to address deeply distressed assets that are approaching maturity than they have been in the past because their balance sheets are in significantly better condition than they have been in years past
  3. However, there is still no regulatory pressure on lenders to move bad assets

Therefore, it is up to owners to convince lenders that it is in the lender’s best interest to address problem assets now.  At some point the Federal Reserve will slow quantitative easing and interest rates will begin to rise, creating a more difficult environment for restructure and refinance. Now is the time to act. 

 

To learn more about the CFO Forum and restructures and refinancing, contact Steve Spall at(sspall@tcamre.com) or (617) 542-1200 at TCAM.

New Clients, Risk Assessment, TCAM News

TCAM Announces New Engagement with Tax Credit Investor

TCAM announced today that it has been engaged by a bank investor to provide annual reviews of low income housing tax credit property investments. The annual reviews provide an updated risk assessment, as well as asset management recommendations and action plans. TCAM’s services help expand the capacity of the bank’s asset management group and help it meet its risk management requirements.

Read More: TCAM Announces New Engagement with Tax Credit Investor

Due Diligence, Multifamily Properties, New Clients, TCAM News, Underwriting

TCAM Announces New Engagement with the Housing Partnership Equity Trust

The Housing Partnership Equity Trust (“HPET” or the “Equity Trust”) has engaged TCAM to provide underwriting services for its multifamily real estate investments. In addition to assisting HPET in designing its investment process and tools, as the underwriter, TCAM helps the Equity Trust model and screen potential transactions, analyze market conditions and operating projections, conduct due diligence and evaluate investments based on the Equity Trust’s underwriting criteria.

HPET was formed as a social-purpose real estate investment trust, sponsored and operated by the Housing Partnership Network (“HPN”), a business collaborative of the nation’s leading housing and community development nonprofits.

Read More: TCAM Announces New Engagement with the Housing Partnership Equity Trust

Affordable Housing Asset Management, Due Diligence, Multifamily Properties, New Clients, Owner's Representation, Risk Assessment, TCAM News, Underwriting

TCAM’s Growth Continues in 2012

TCAM, a leading investment manager and consultant in the afforable housing industry, today announced the achievement of several milestones in 2012. In 2012, TCAM’s asset management portfolio increased by over 16,700 units in more than 145 properties, representing $850 million of client capital.

In addition, TCAM continued to diversify its service offerings providing underwriting, asset monitoring, owner’s representation, risk mitigation, workout support and consulting services for its growing list of clients.

Finally, in 2012, TCAM helped its clients achieve a number of successes, including dramatic improvements in property performance and conclusion of sales, refinancings and restructurings of property investments. TCAM also helped several clients create or strengthen their own asset management organizations.

Read More: TCAM’s Growth Continues in 2012