There is a shortage of nearly 1 million affordable homes in five Southern California counties, according to a new report from the nonprofit California Housing Partnership Corp. A total of 949,016 more affordable rental units are needed for families earning 50% or less of the median household income, the report said. LA County accounts for 551,807 of those needed units. The median income for LA County is $64,300, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Developmen

“The key to success is action, and the essential in action is perseverance.”—Sun Yat-sen Each property type has its obstacles. Retail and office have to deal with fickle tenants where huge work letters are usually required. Hotels and assisted living facilities are operating businesses. On the surface, multifamily seems the most stable property type. After all, there is no shortage of people to pick from if your property is well maintained, well located and priced right. This

Recently I've had a couple of property owners ask me about what they should do when they notice someone living at the property that is not on the lease. The city of LA has the following guidelines (taken directly from the city website): The Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) allows a 10% rent increase for additional tenants. On December 8, 1990, Section 151.06 G was added to the RSO to disallow additional tenant in-creases for the first minor dependent child added to the hous

The Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved new rules on Wednesday that will allow landlords to rent out unpermitted apartments. The new ordinance is key to “protecting low- and moderate-income Angelenos doing their best to get by, living in unapproved units [through] no fault of their own,” said Councilmember Jose Huizar. Every year, Huizar said, city inspectors remove from the rental market 400 to 500 units never approved for occupancy (think, for example, of converte

While multifamily remains one of the most desirable asset classes to finance, a number of new factors have emerged that are making it more challenging to secure competitive financing. The multifamily market has certainly enjoyed a golden era. Vacancy rates are down, rent growth is up and overall fundamentals point to a healthy investment market for multifamily. According to a recent CoStar report, total net absorption of apartment units in 2016 held steady at over 172,000 uni

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac still have housing blood on their hands from the 2008 financial crash. However, the giant GSEs, placed in government conservatorship in September 2008, have now, virtually all by themselves, created another bubble - this time in the multifamily rental market. Fannie and Freddie made 53% of all apartment loans in 2016 - that's down from their combined 68% market share in 2012. So, their conservator, The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), recently

Real Estate Investors continue to look for ways to manage their investment portfolio and to create the most of its potential. Here are 7 essential questions to consider: 1- How do I create Greater CASH FLOW from my Properties? How do I measure their cash producing performance and returns from the increased equity over the years? 2- Is it possible to Raise the level of Appreciation in my Investment Properties? 3- Is Depreciation (my tax write-off) still effective with