Multi-Housing News - September 2009 - (Page 8)

executive insight The Consensus is… It has been about a year since the worst of the financing crisis began. At this point, what is the consensus among the experts regarding where the economy is headed? Is the worst over? How bad will it get for apartments in the worst recession in recent years? MHN’s Executive Editor Keat Foong catches up with Jack G. Kern, managing director, Kern Investment Research, LLC for some insights. (Don’t miss Kern’s weekly blog “Capital Insights” at www.multi-housingnews.com.) Have economists come to any consensus regarding the forecast for the economy? Based on economic news releases recently, most Q&A economists are split on what will constitute the recovery. The most recent numbers seem to suggest a positive burst of economic activity by the end of 2009, but this won’t lead to a sustained jump in growth for quite some time. The consensus seems to be slow growth to year-end, and a gradual recovery, jobless at first, through 2011. Do most economists agree that job growth will resume by the end of 2010? I believe employment has already begun a recovery of sorts, illustrated by declining job loss, but real job growth will not be evident until 2011 at the earliest. At that time we can expect to see real job growth, above the 75,000 jobs per month [rate]. Looking at the big picture, just how serious is this downturn? This was a perfect storm of sorts, with a wide number of sectors falling into decline, one after the other. I think the sense of how bad it has become is noted in the double-digit employment rate. The economy is vast, complex and resilient and we’re going through a readjustment of sorts. I don’t think there’s any permanent damage, but most of the jobs lost are not coming back in the same form. We’ve seen that the economy can operate quite Looking to apply the lowest cost payment type to each transaction with your residents? From ACH and check scanning to credit/debit and cash payments, PropertyBridge reduces your fees, improves community staff productivity, reduces fraud, and gets your organization paid faster. The result is unparalleled ROI on the automated payment solution that residents and CFOs love. That even includes cash payments at over 40,000 MoneyGram agent locations nationwide. No wonder PropertyBridge is the number one choice in portfolio-wide payments for the multifamily industry’s leading firms. Slow growth until year-end, with a gradual recovery through 2011, says economist Jack Kern Dollar by dollar, you’ll save big with the most cost-effective payments solution in multifamily Multiple payment types mean great value for you and your residents Customized marketing & adoption programs to optimize your ROI Unparalleled compliance & security so your business is never at risk Integration with your accounting system means reduced administrative tasks It all adds up to an unbeatable combination of ACH, credit/debit, check scanning, and cash solutions, only from PropertyBridge, a MoneyGram Company Get a FREE guide on reducing resident payment costs with increased adoption. Just call 866 RENT 002 or visit www.propertybridge.com/guide 8 September 2009 | Multi-Housing News http://www.multi-housingnews.com http://www.propertybridge.com/guide http://www.propertybridge.com/guide

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Multi-Housing News - September 2009

Multi-Housing News - September 2009
Contents
From the Editor
Letters to the Editor
Executive Insight: Jack Kern
Market Pulse
Conversation with Shaun Donovan
Property Management
Global Market Report
Development & Design: Low-Rise
Directory: Top Architects
Kitchen & Bath: Cabinets
Products: Leasing Tools
Technology: Lead Management
NMHC Notebook

Multi-Housing News - September 2009