I’m Joe Stampone. I work at Atlas Real Estate Partners (‘AREP’), a private real estate investment firm focused on value-add multifamily investments. ASotREG is a place where I share my thoughts on real estate as a career, technology, entrepreneurship, passive investing, and anything else that piques my interest.
Recent Posts
What’s going on with Multifamily Collections?
If I were to tell you that ~40% of your residents were unemployed, what do you think that would do to rent collections? Would you believe me if I told you multifamily collections were more or less unaffected through May? Probably not. So what’s going on? One of the sad realities of the coronavirus is the disproportionate impact it has on those at the lowest income and education levels. Most wealthy individuals can work from home and escape areas most hard hit by the virus. The individuals putting themselves at risk by working are doing so because they must. A majority of those who have...
COVID-19 Impact on CRE: Accelerating Trends and Secular Shifts
There’s a lot of chatter and speculation in the commercial real estate community about what a post-Corona world will look like. Is business travel dead? Will consumers ever shop in malls again? Are we all going to be working remotely? Are people going to move out of cities and into the suburbs? Will we have to practice social distancing in restaurants and bars? What happens to gyms and fitness classes? Who knows. I think the world is going to look very different over the next few months, but we’ll eventually begin to act more and more like we did pre-Corona. It’s important to remember...
Reflections on Working from Home
Over the past few years, I’ve spent most of my time working remotely either on the road traveling to properties or out of my apartment. I’ve created an environment and workflow that’s conducive to remote work and I utilize technology to communicate seamlessly with the rest of my team. I’ve enjoyed the benefits of working from home; no commute, an asynchronous schedule, and the ability to hang with my daughter throughout the day. For me, remote work was a strategic choice and a luxury afforded to me. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced all teams to adopt a remote working environment and...
Should I pay my rent?
Over the past 3 weeks, nearly 17 million people filed for unemployment. True unemployment at this moment is about 18%, compared with just 3.5% as of the first week of March. Many of these individuals rent apartments, have little in the way of savings, and find themselves in a difficult position. Thankfully, the government has taken swift action. The recently enacted CARES Act puts money in the hands of individuals so they can keep paying their bills, but the timing of the stimulus remains uncertain. The CARES Act also put a moratorium on evictions for any property financed with...
Thoughts on COVID-19 and the Impact on Workforce Housing: March 22nd, 2020
I started my career in the real estate business in 2009, the bottom of the Global Financial Crisis. It’s been a historic 10+-year run for the multifamily sector. The combination of economic growth, organic rent growth, compressing cap rates, and sustained low interest rates lead to great returns. That’s easy to say looking backward. There were many moments over the past 10 years where it felt like pricing was frothy and the music was ready to stop. My career has always been underscored by the risk of a recession driven by an unknown catalyst. I graduated from college in 2008 and saw...
3rd Party Property Management: Far from a Set it and Forget it Solution
Many multifamily operators (Atlas included) utilize 3rd party property management to oversee the day-to-day management of their properties. It’s great in many ways. You can maintain a lean team, utilize the resources of a large institutional management firm, and make a change if they’re not performing up to your standards. That said, implementing a 3rd party to oversee your deals is hardly a ‘set it and forget it’ solution. Multifamily properties require aggressive hands-on asset management and certain tasks must be handled at the ownership level. In my experience, here’s what 3rd party...
Lifestyle Brands Physical Real Estate Strategy Extends Beyond Retail
The way lifestyle brands approach their physical real estate strategy is changing. As sales have shifted online, brands have begun to utilize their physical presence to deepen their relationship with the consumer, share their story, showcase their products, and ultimately fuel (online) sales. This strategy is not just being deployed across conventional retail space, we’re beginning to see consumer brands in multifamily, hospitality (hotels/restaurants), and the condo business as well. Multifamily, until recently, was a relatively commoditized product that competed on price and location....
The Game has Changed: The Importance of Connecting with Residents
Direct to consumer brands (think Harry’s, Warby Parker, and Casper) have stolen market share from the incumbents. Their success isn’t because they have a slightly better product, it’s because they are obsessed with connecting with the customer. Real estate owners/operators can learn a lot from the success of digitally native DTC brands. In the apartment industry, there is little brand awareness and almost no brand loyalty, so residents are up for grabs. Owners who resonate with prospects, offer a great value, and cater to their lifestyle will ultimately win. I spend a disproportionate...
Two Multifamily Myths Debunked
The demand for multifamily remains strong, but the drivers of demand are often different than what most people think. Tell me if you’ve heard these two narratives: Millennials are moving more often so they prefer the flexibility of renting.Millennials have a shifting preference toward renting over buying. I’ve heard these from many smart real estate professionals who typically use anecdotal evidence to support their claim. While Millennials are staying in the renter pool longer, it’s generally not because of the reasons noted above. Let’s start with the first myth that increased mobility...
10 Multifamily Predictions for 2020
I hope everyone had a great holiday and enjoyed some quality time with friends and family. I was able to disconnect and spend a week in FL with my family. The time off is great, but I’m eager to get back to work and tackle the big initiatives and goals I have for the year ahead. In my first post of 2020, I want to make some predictions and point out the trends I see continuing within the multifamily space over the next 12 months. Here are my 10 multifamily predictions for 2020. The End of the ‘All White’ Kitchen: How many value-add projects do you see with the same ‘all-white’ look?...