Anyone who has managed a property knows there are a lot of moving parts. Managing multiple properties across diverse geographical locations can increase those complexities manifold. Throw in a global pandemic and things become even more complicated. Suddenly public health orders limit site visits, viewings, and document signings. And technology becomes a vital tool for keeping residents and employees safe and cared for. 

Avenue Living has used Yardi and other property management technologies since before the pandemic, as part of our commitment to running a paperless organization, improving efficiency, and customer service. So, we were prepared to adapt to new public health measures when they came into effect in March 2020. Our existing infrastructure made the transition to virtual viewings and digital lease signing easy, but we were also able to carry on our day-to-day operations smoothly because we had tools in place to manage them virtually.  

Building-Level Accuracy 

Avenue Living owns and operates properties across the Prairies, covering a broad geographical area. While we have teams in every market dedicated to in-person management, property management software gives us a big-picture view of all our buildings, but it also allows us a more granular view of each building.  

This view is especially valuable now, when public health measures have kept in-person visits to a minimum in order to ensure resident and employee safety. Clear communication is key when we’re trying to minimize how many people need to be on-site, and when. Yardi allows us to create work orders for our teams in the field and attach photos to ensure the information we capture is accurate, both about the job and its resolution. 

Increased Efficiency 

For many management companies with large portfolios, like Avenue Living, technology allows us to keep a close eye on how we fulfill work orders, address resident concerns, and communicate between teams. Our properties are spread out across several provinces, and technology like Yardi ensures all our teams are operating with up-to-date information. 

We’ve also integrated our listing services with our website, which helps ensure our listings are always up to date. In the past, our leasing specialists would have had to handle these updates manually but automating them frees them up to focus on finding the right matches for prospective residents — a task that’s much easier when they know they’re dealing with up-to-date information. 

Informed Decision Making 

“Property management is cyclical,” says Jeff Konechny, Avenue Living’s manager of enterprise applications. “Which means we can collect past data and use it to anticipate future results.” When we can analyze monthly and quarterly patterns, we can see how to improve our processes — for example, how we complete work orders or suite turns, or how our rental rate fits into the market. “We can also use the data we collect to look at the issues residents have raised with us and make informed decisions about what needs to be replaced or repaired, for instance,” says Jeff.  

Better Customer Service 

We operate from what we call a “single source of truth.” The information our call centre takes in reaches our Regional Vice Presidents and Regional Portfolio Managers, who make sure the right people are aware of and addressing the resident concern. The team in the field can generate work orders, upload photos, and add their notes to that same file. In the past, these might have been on paper or sent via email — there may have been documents stored in disparate locations. Now, everything is in one central, easy-to-access place. “Anyone can look at a file and see a lease addendum or a parking agreement or a concern when they need to, without relying on someone in an office to find, scan, and send it to them,” says Jeff. 

Future Possibilities 

We’re always working on ways to make our resident experience better. Our future vision involves technology, as we examine ways to create an experience that gives our residents the ability to do more online. “We really want to make Avenue Living the type of property manager that’s easier to connect with than any other property manager,” says Jeff.  

While we’re still developing these solutions, we’re using the suite of tools we have now to make that experience as seamless as possible, from the moment they contact us for the first time onward.  

This commentary and the information contained herein are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities or related financial instruments. This article may contain forward-looking statements. Readers should refer to information contained on our website at www.alamstg.wpenginepowered.com for additional information regarding forward-looking statements and certain risks associated with them. 

It’s no secret that securing homeownership is becoming more and more difficult in Canada. With increasing costs, rising interest rates, tightening mortgage rules, record levels of debt and plateaued incomes, the barriers — for many — seem unsurpassable.

According to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) (2018), “housing is considered affordable if it costs less than 30 per cent of a household’s before-tax income.” Based on this statistic, 17 per cent of Canadians own homes are just within their budget. And although homeownership in Canada is considered strong, one in every four Canadian households spends 30 per cent or more of their pre-tax income on mortgage payments (Statistics Canada, 2019).

40 per cent of the Canadian workforce is made up of essential workers, such as police officers, firemen, teachers, nurses and medical personnel, who fulfill our basic needs and keep our communities safe. Some are well compensated, but despite being gainfully employed, the essential worker’s average wage, excluding healthcare workers, is almost 20 per cent lower than employees in other industries (McQuarrie 2020). According to Statistics Canada (2020a), many essential workers rent long-term as homeownership is simply not a financial reality.

Housing affordability impacts other demographics, too. For example, seniors and students both often struggle to find comfortable housing within their economic reach. Restaurant workers, delivery drivers, and even office workers earning a moderate income also struggle to find homes they can afford.

In a 2019 Globe and Mail interview, Chief Executive Officer of the CMHC Evan Siddall said, “We need to stop taxing density and call out the glorification of home ownership for the regressive canard that it is. Overpromotion of home ownership is counterproductive, increasing the division between rich and poor.” Housing experts are calling for creative solutions to increase density to make current land usage more effective, by turning residential single-family dwellings into ‘plexes,’ townhouses and low- to mid-rise buildings, accepting that long-term rentals are part of the solution.

This demand for affordable, attainable dwellings and walkable communities continues to grow, but city zoning regulations and market regularities promote urban sprawl, making this more and more difficult to meet without intervention. As the demand for this housing category increases, prices rise and communities begin to experience gentrification, increasing the gap between classes and fuelling our nation-wide housing crisis. Without affordably priced dwellings, communities risk instability in children’s education, community populations and individual health as lower and moderate income families make difficult trade-offs to make ends meet (Enterprise, 2014).

These obstacles barring working Canadians from owning homes creates immediacy for housing affordability. Residents shouldn’t have to depend on their government to supply affordable options for them; they need access to safe, comfortable housing options at a rate appropriate for their income.

We recognize this rising need for quality rentals and aim to serve Canadians across the Prairies. Everyone deserves access to quality housing, whatever income bracket they may fall under. That’s why we invest in multi-family units and bring focus to providing housing affordability to the Canadian workforce, the backbone of our society.

We proudly provide housing to accommodate those who are gainfully employed but fall short of homeownership. These individuals often earn an insufficient income to live in close proximity to work, but want to live nearby. The buildings we invest in are class B and C apartments, typically low-rise, older inventory with affordable rent because they are purchased, upgraded, and then rented at a rate that is much more attainable than a new build.

Compared to other asset classes, class B and C housing presents several advantages, including locations, unit sizes, vacancy rates, rental prices and growth opportunities. Affordably priced dwellings benefit not only its residents, but the community as a whole.

Benefits of Affordably Priced Housing:

Creates a stable community. The growing need for housing that is affordable to the everyday Canadian means that this type of property will always be in demand. Upgraded, affordable rentals support a growing and stable population while encouraging economic investment from those residing in and giving back to the local community.

Builds the local workforce. Affordable multi-family dwellings in a neighbourhood means continual community growth and livelihood. With more essential workers, seniors, and students in the community, services and offerings grow and helps maintain the local economy.

Encourages economic stability. Essential workers tend to be dependable renters and have steady incomes. In times of economic downturn, essential workers often experience income increases as they are needed more than ever, thriving financially while they keep us afloat.

Increases disposable income. Paying less for rent means residents will have the choice of how to spend their money. With lower debt levels and more disposable income, residents can put more money back into their local community, thus fuelling the economy.

Allows for walkability. By increasing density in neighbourhoods, we provide ‘neighbourhood living’ over ‘city living,’ allowing residents to easily explore their community on foot. This actively supports small businesses, promotes physical exercise and encourages individuals to get involved in their neighbourhood.

Lowers our carbon footprint. By providing housing near places of employment, we help to lower our residents’ carbon footprint by shortening commutes, giving time and convenience back to these individuals. In addition, we seek out existing buildings and reposition them through strategic capital improvements, a carbon-friendly alternative to building new.

Revitalizes our communities. In addition to lowering our carbon footprint, investing in vintage properties and repositioning them benefits the community, making it a more attractive home for future residents while maintaining an affordable rate.

The bottom line is simple:

For many people, there’s a trade-off between convenience and affordability.  But it doesn’t have to be that way. Properties that charge affordable rent benefit individuals and the community at large by increasing neighbourhood quality and stability, providing economic security and allowing Canadians to live in safe and comfortable homes.

This commentary and the information contained herein are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities or related financial instruments. This article may contain forward-looking statements. Readers should refer to information contained on our website at www.alamstg.wpenginepowered.com for additional information regarding forward-looking statements and certain risks associated with them.

From our very first deal, Avenue Living Asset Management has relied on our legal professionals to help make sure things go smoothly. In fact, Shelley Allchurch was one of our very first full-time team members, joining us as general counsel in 2010.

“We’ve been so lucky to have Shelley on our team right from the beginning,” says Avenue Living Founder and CEO, Anthony Giuffre. “She’s built an incredible team over the years. It has really evolved as Avenue Living has grown and she and her team have become an essential part of our platform.”

Today, our legal team includes 17 professionals — lawyers who are experts in real-estate law, securities law, corporate law, and risk management, as well as paralegals, in addition to an insurance risk expert and a contract management specialist.

“We’ve really expanded and adapted to meet the demands of the business,” says Shelley. As Avenue Living has evolved, we’ve called on the legal team to handle everything from typical tenancy issues and employment contracts, all the way to complex legal matters, such as multi-jurisdictional real estate acquisitions, M&A transactions, restructurings, fund formation and the negotiation and drafting of sophisticated commercial agreements. The legal team ensures the decisions we make and the actions we take are in line with local regulations and mitigate risk for our many stakeholders, including investors, residents, employees, and the communities in which we operate.

“Legal teams can often be seen as the naysayers,” says Shelley. “But that’s not our role. We’re here to support and facilitate Avenue Living in reaching our business goals. We do this by looking at the business through a legal lens and bringing a unique perspective to decision-making.”

While Avenue Living started out in 2006 as an owner/operator of multi-family residential properties, we’ve since grown to include a thriving group of companies that invests in the everyday, from self-storage to technology. These companies all have their own unique needs, and our legal team does a great job at managing most of these needs in-house.

The members of the legal team are partners in the organization. Legal touches every aspect of Avenue Living’s business. Their specialized knowledge and expertise serve us in so many ways — in large ways, such as mergers and acquisitions, and in smaller, everyday ways, like vetting our communications (including this blog post). They help us ensure we adhere to our organizational pillars, which guide our decisions every day.

“It’s vital that we understand the business strategy and objectives,” says Trevor Korsrud, Associate General Counsel to the organization, “so we can align with business units throughout Avenue Living and provide them with the guidance they need.”

Being part of an in-house team has meant stretching the legal team’s knowledge and abilities in ways not possible in private practice. The Avenue Living team touches many different aspects of law in their day-to-day duties, whether they’re providing counsel themselves or consulting and working with specialized experts outside the organization.

And like so many groups within this organization, our legal team regularly learns from each other, sharing insights and experiences as we take on new challenges, together.

“I’m so proud of the team we’ve built,” says Shelley. “It’s challenging, motivating, and validating work.”

This commentary and the information contained herein are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities or related financial instruments. This article may contain forward-looking statements. Readers should refer to information contained on our website at www.alamstg.wpenginepowered.com for additional information regarding forward-looking statements and certain risks associated with them.