Category Archives: Other/Misc.

We Need Jobs, But Also Skilled Workers

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computer_handsThe Boston Globe recently reported that “the state’s tech sector is growing fast, but a shortage of qualified workers is preventing Massachusetts from becoming the capital of the nation’s innovation economy”, according to the 2014 State of Technology Report released by the Mass Technology Leadership Council. “Creating the jobs isn’t the hard part – filling them is the hard part,” said Tom Hopcroft, chief executive of MassTLC. “We can’t find enough people with the skills to fill all of these tech jobs.”

These are not the only types of jobs that remain open according to this Boston Globe graphic, which shows that it is not just the high end tech jobs that are having trouble finding workers.

So, what is worse – not having the jobs, or not being able to provide the workers for those companies that are expanding? It should be the former.  Trying to create new jobs is not only difficult, but there is actually no proven way to do it.  If what we have is a gap in training, or the proper transportation to access trained workers, we should be able to remedy that.

Local and state government should be partnering with local community colleges, vocational schools, and universities to work directly with those businesses that are fortunate enough to be growing and hiring.  If we don’t fix this imbalance expeditiously, we may have bigger problems.  Companies will begin expanding elsewhere and, then not having any local jobs to fill would be a lot worse.

Floods and Hope in Vermont

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I was in Vermont when Irene hit and the devastation that resulted is hard to fully comprehend.  We have certainly had our share of storms and Nor’easters, but it wasn’t the high winds that were the problem – it was the flooding of most every river in the state.

Waitsfield, VT Begins Clean Up

Rivers became lakes, overflowing across roadways, through homes and businesses, hitting owners – few of them with flood insurance.  Flooding is not a normal event here – they call this a “500 year” storm!

Bridges were washed away and roads disappeared.  In our town of Waitsfield, the river rose almost 20 feet and undermined the historic covered bridge.  A key historic building that lost its foundation may be condemned.  The flood ran through the local stores, leaving behind 4-6 inches of sludge and an unhealthy film on everything inside.

But on Monday morning, under a bright sun, hundreds of volunteers in Waitsfield and Warren lined up to help.  (And I know that this was the case throughout the state.) Fulltime residents and vacationers joined together to help by emptying homes and businesses of endless buckets of sludge and all sorts of debris.  People worked to scrape away the muck from the streets.  This work has continued and a headquarters has been established in the center of town for volunteers to find out where they are needed next.

It is frustrating to see so many suffer through a natural disaster like this, but it is also inspirational to see the unrestrained community response of neighbors, friends, and visitors.  I don’t know if all of the businesses will be able to recover from this setback, but for those that do,  it would not have been possible without the help they received from these generous volunteers.

NAIOP Brings the Heat to End Homelessness

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Records were certainly broken at NAIOP’s Annual Golf Tournament benefitting Heading Home, held Wednesday.  Not just the 90+ degree temperatures or the countless number of water bottles consumed on the course, but a record that matters – money raised. This was the year that NAIOP passed $1,600,000 in total donations to Heading Home, raised over the tournament’s 23-year history.   

It was a proud moment when I presented Tom Lorello, Heading Home’s Executive Director, a super-sized check in the amount of $122,000, an amount I know represents their largest corporate donation, and which they have come to count on each year. 

David Begelfer (far right) and Tom Lorello (third from right), joined by volunteers and staff.

This money will help Heading Home fulfill its mission to end homelessness in Greater Boston by providing housing in conjunction with effective support services to help change the conditions that create homelessness. Tom and his staff have been pioneers in the Housing First movement, and they are seeing great results despite the continuing housing crisis that grips our state.

At the tournament, we shared a few facts about Heading Home and their clients that help tell the story about why we support their work:

Did You Know?

  • Average age of a Heading Home client is 8 years old
  • In Massachusetts each night there are 3,000 families without a home

In 2010, Heading Home:

  • Served 2,134 at-risk and homeless people
  • Placed 112 families and  58 individuals into permanent housing

The Heading Home Formula:

  • Housing + Job Training + Matched Savings Plans = Self Sufficiency
  • It works: 90% of Heading Home clients have remained permanently housed

Heading Home was the day’s big winner, of course, but tell that to the winners of NAIOP’s new Super Raffle, which offered over 30 prizes donated by local firms. Congratulations to John Bryer of DiMella Shaffer Associates, Inc. who won the grand prize of a Mini Cooper lease, Dante Angelucci of Leggat McCall Properties who won an entertainment center, and Steve Daley of AEW Capital Management who won a vacation cruise package!  (See photos, press release, and other resources)

None of this could have happened without the hard work of the Charitable Events Committee, led by Bob Hayes at KeyPoint Partners and Steve Brodsky at Synergy Investment & Development, along with the dedicated staff at Heading Home, NAIOP’s Board and staff, and of course, our many generous donors and sponsors.  Thank you to all who helped make this day truly one for the record books!

Four New Tools for Real Estate Marketers

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Monday’s program on Jumpstart Your Marketing included a wealth of ideas and examples of how to navigate the modern marketing mix, including new approaches to websites, how to select the right social media platform for the job, and knowing when to let the product speak for itself. Among the case studies and client examples, the speakers shared a handful of resources guaranteed to help marketers make better use of their time, get a new perspective on their work, and reach their target audience.

Here are four new tools CRE marketers should know about:

Speakers at NAIOP's Jumpstart Your Marketing program (l-r): Susan Shelby, Mo Doerr, Diane Danielson, Steve Steinberg, Tina Snyder

  • HootSuite – One of the best tools to automate and organize social media, HootSuite allows you to post once on multiple channels (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and others), as well as scheduling tweets, retweeting, and tracking. As Diane Danielson said “This allows me to write once and publish twice!” We use the service as well, and have found it invaluable for managing NAIOP’s social media efforts.
  • Texting To Sell – Tina Snyder, speaking with colleague Steve Steinberg, shared this cost-effective way to generate leads from property signage. A call to action is displayed asking passers-by to text a unique Mobile ID, after which they instantly receive two text messages back: The first shows pictures and listing details for that property, the second provides contact info with an option to receive an immediate call back. Each time a property’s unique Mobile ID is texted, you receive an alert with your prospect’s contact information. It’s a simple, effective and low cost option to generate leads!
  • Guts: Advertising from the Inside Out, by John Lyons: A classic how-to book recommended by Mo Doerr, who raved about the author’s provocative approach to strategy.  One of her favorite quotes: “Have teeth, will bite. A strategy is a carefully designed plot to murder the competition. Any idea that makes your competition hate you, cry foul, or quietly invoke Chapter 11 qualifies.” (currently out of print, but still available online)
  • Facebook –Facebook isn’t new, but what many don’t realize is that it has greater customization options than may be obvious. Diane used the landing page for SouthField as an example, showing how, through careful use of custom tabs and graphics, they were able to fully brand their Facebook Page, keeping it tightly integrated with the rest of the SouthField marketing materials.

These are just a few of the tools available to today’s marketing professional – what are your favorites? Is there a tool you can’t live without, or one you wish you’d never wasted your time on? Let us know – comment today!

Predictions for Real Estate in 2011

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This is the fifth recession and subsequent recovery I have worked through.  I have learned that business cycles have been and will always be a part of our industry.  It’s just a question of timing.  

Now that 2011 is underway, here are my predictions for the real estate market this year:

  1. Office rents:  Tower rents will break the $75 per square foot barrier. Suburban rents along 128 will hit $35.
  2. New Construction: Multi-family construction will continue to be a sure thing in Boston and the suburbs.  The only speculative commercial building construction starts in the state will be in Cambridge.
  3. Filenes in Downtown Crossing: Will be approved this year with a construction start in 2012. Besides the obvious garage, there will be at least two floors of retail, an apartment tower, and a phase two office tower.
  4. Financing: Plentiful for the well capitalized owner from multiple sources including CMBS.  Interest rates: steady in the 5-6 percent range.
  5. Cambridge market: Employment and space growth in the Life Sciences (biotech and pharma) will lead to new developments.
  6. Hospitals/Colleges: Improving endowments and lower construction costs will put back on track pre-recession expansion plans (but not Harvard’s massive Allston development.)  
  7. Multi-family construction: Twelve developments (each with over 100 units) will start this year.
  8. Foreclosures: Single family foreclosures will increase and some commercial loans for industrial and suburban office/R&D will be placed on the block.
  9. Investment sales: The number and gross sales volume will be the highest since 2007.
  10. Unemployment rate for the Commonwealth: It will be up slightly (less than 1 percentage point) by the end of the year.