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Kirk Preiss, Principal and CFO of The Preiss Company, recently served on a panel discussion at the InterFace Student Housing Conference. The one-day national networking conference was held on June 16 at The Union League in Philadelphia, PA.
Preiss was one of four panel members who presented “The Frontline of Student Housing: Leasing, Operations & Management”. Joining Preiss were Cole Heard, Senior Vice President/Division Director of Collegiate Real Estate Services Group; Eric Blevins, President of Paradigm Properties Management; and Julie Bonnin, Chief Operating Officer of Asset Campus Housing. During their 45-minute session, the panel offered attendees 20 leasing, operations, and management ideas that can mean the difference between being in the black or in the red.
Student housing is one of the most active and healthy niche markets in commercial real estate today. Preiss says that student housing opportunities lie in operations and that the industry is a specialty niche that requires an experienced and specialized workforce. He adds that investors or banks dealing with student housing should ensure that their management team is experienced and has a clear understanding of the industry.
“The Preiss Company is getting quite a few requests to do student housing property management across the country,” says Preiss. “Our company is working with groups that are developing new apartments, banks who have foreclosed, and investors who realize they cannot sell and must have a good annual cash on cash return.”
The Preiss Company is currently the largest provider of off-campus student housing at North Carolina State University, Clemson University, Auburn University in Alabama, and the University of Texas in Austin and the second largest provider at UNC Charlotte. The company has acquired $356 million in student housing and was recently honored by the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce with its Steady Growth and Profitability Master Award.
“One of our key secrets is ‘management by measurement’”, adds Preiss. “We manage and track all financial drivers from rents and income to expenses like utilities. Student housing continues to be robust and The Preiss Company looks forward to building on our current industry accomplishments and successes.”
The InterFace Student Housing Conference targets owners and operators of student housing and explores leading issues and trends in the recession-resistant student housing industry. This year’s conference topics included a campus marketing and leasing update, information on where investors could find either yield or distressed opportunities in today’s market, operations strategies, current lenders, mixed-use “gateway projects”, and overcoming barriers into the student housing market.
About The Preiss Company
Founded in 1987 by Donna Preiss, TPCO (tpco.com) employs over 168 team members and provides a wide range of services including acquisition, property management, due diligence, construction management, development, and consulting for multi-family real estate investments. In its 22nd year, TPCO has formed over 50 partnerships and developed over 20 projects stretching from Maryland to Texas.
About InterFace Student Housing
InterFace Student Housing (francepublications.com) is produced by France Publications, the leading publisher of commercial real estate news and information in the United States. France Publication titles include Heartland Real Estate Business, Texas Real Estate Business, Southeast Real Estate Business, Northeast Real Estate Business, Western Real Estate Business and Shopping Center Business, along with six other commercial real estate-oriented magazines and five regionally driven magazines focused on wealth management.
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