December 2008 Newsletter

Now it's more important that ever to protect your Property Investments

According to the Commerce Department, construction spending in October was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.072 trillion, down 1.2 percent from September and 4.6 percent below October 2007 figures. During the first 10 months of the year, construction spending amounted to $906.3 billion, 5.7 percent below the $960.9 billion for the same period in 2007.

With less new construction, your properties become more valuable. However, to keep your occupancy rate the highest possible, you need to make sure that you provide standards that attract the best tenants.

Improvements can take the form of cosmetic improvements or substantial rehabilitation. Cosmetic improvements include such things as new paint or wallpaper, new decor to the common elements, new landscaping, new carpeting/flooring, etc. Substantial rehabilitation involves making structural improvements to the property – for example a substantial rehab may involve redoing all the units of a multifamily property, or changing the structural façade of a shopping center, or making major renovations to the lobby of a large office building. In any case, you increase the value of the property for not only your tenants, but for your own portfolio as well.

Evaluate the historical operating statements of the property to determine if there are areas where you can decrease the expenses. For example, perhaps improving the property with more energy efficient light bulbs in the common areas will drastically reduce your monthly electrical bills. Or perhaps you find that the gas company can individually meter the units so that instead of paying for the gas, you can fairly pass that expense onto the tenants. In the vast majority of instances, a commercial property owner can cut expenses without significantly impacting the operations of the real estate itself.

In working with our diverse client base, we have some ideas for best practices in improving your properties without significantly increasing your budget. We're happy to discuss some of these ideas with you. Please call and set up a time for a discussion.

Asian Needle Ants
Pachycondyla chinensis, commonly called the Asian needle ant typically nests in soil in somewhat damp areas, especially below stones, logs, stumps, or other debris. In urban settings it may also be found under mulch, railroad ties, bricks and pavers, and other such things. Colony size ranges from less than 100 individuals to several thousand, and multiple queens may be present.

Last issue we mentioned the population of Fire Ants is exploding. Now, there is another interloper.

The needle ant ranges from Georgia to New York and is now widespread in the Carolinas, researchers have discovered. They say it poses an emerging risk to public health and to native ecosystems.

"We found it in large evidence," said Benoit Guenard, a graduate student at N.C. State University who is writing a doctoral dissertation on the ant. "We found them in every forest in the Raleigh area. People have them in the backyard."

The ant isn't readily recognized, even by insect experts. In August 2006, Guenard was collecting insects in Umstead State Park soon after arriving at NCSU and found an unfamiliar ant. About 50 ant species are known to inhabit the Triangle.Researchers at Clemson University said the insect poses an emerging threat to public health, particularly to people with strong allergic reactions to insect stings.

Patricia Zungoli, a professor of entomology at Clemson, said researchers had documented three cases in recent years of people stung by the ant experiencing anaphylactic shock -- two in South Carolina and one in North Carolina.

"In all three cases, the people recovered, but only because they were close to a hospital and received medical attention immediately," Zungoli said. "My guess is there are more cases out there than are documented, and they are just being attributed to fire ants. When people are stung by an ant, they just assume it's a fire ant." there's no reason to panic. The needle ant is quite timid and its instinct is to hide or flee. It stings only as a last resort, such as if it gets trapped in clothing, researchers say.

"These are not aggressive ants," Zungoli said. "They do not attack in unison the way fire ants will. When you're stung, you're usually stung by one insect."

Somehow, that doesn’t make me feel better.