LOS ANGELES, CA – International award-winning KTGY Architecture + Plotting announced today that Manny Gonzalez, FAIA, LEED AP, managing principal of the firm’s Los Angeles office, will serve as keynote speaker for a live webcast scheduled to air on February 22, 2017, at 3:00 p.m. ET on MultifamilyBiz.com, the largest media platform in the multifamily housing industry.

2020 Vision: Housing Trends of Today and Beyond will delve into an array of topics, such as home automation, urban living, walkable communities, and how millennial’s are driving technology into the housing mix. This quick-paced 60-minute digital media webcast will focus on what multifamily housing professionals need to know about the next generation of design trends emerging in the market.

Joining Gonzalez, are property management expert Ernest F. Oriente of PowerHour, and multifamily technology innovator Kerry W. Kirby, CEO of 365 Connect, who are the hosts of the MultifamilyBiz.com + PowerHour Digital Media Webcast Conference Series. With a combined experience of nearly 50 years in the multifamily housing industry, Oriente and Kirby deliver comprehensive, educational, and leading-edge programming.

Kirby stated, “We are excited to have Manny join us and present his insights on where housing is trending to our global audience. As a leader in our industry, Manny always delivers current, captivating, and relevant information that is affecting the way multifamily communities are being developed in today’s ever-changing market.”

Gonzalez reports that the KB Home ProjeKt at last year’s GreenBuild Conference demonstrated some of the features of the future, including a green wall, drone landing pad, and refrigerated package delivery storage. It also showcased a very simple “low tech” feature of a wall that went to allow a secondary bedroom to become an office or disappear altogether and expand the fantastic room into an even larger entertainment space.

Remember the Betamax and Window’s Vista? Not all technologies are improvements and developers need to avoid building properties that are outdated before they stabilize, said Gonzalez. “I can remember when builders thought they were on the cutting edge of technology incorporating iPod docking stations into new construction. It wasn’t even a year later that Apple introduced a newer version of the iPod and it didn’t fit anymore. In fact, none of the following generation did either. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth have allowed us more freedom with technology so we are less likely to build something that is dated just after its completed,” Gonzalez stated.

Uber and Lyft are now mainstream travel options and the autonomous car is just around the corner, Gonzalez reports. What is the future of auto storage in housing? In 2015 the 16 to 34 age group only bought 3.5 cars per 100 individuals compared to more than 6.5 for each of the 35 to 49 and 50 to 54 groups. “Parking requirements in new urban developments have been dramatically reduced,” said Gonzalez. “It’s not unrealistic to reckon that new homes in 10 years won’t have a garage. Residents will use their app that delivers the driverless car service to their front door.”

Millennials have been the focus of apartment builders the last half dozen years, but are age-qualified properties the next huge thing? With 10,000 people a day turning 65 until 2030, the boomers are a huge demographic. “Affordable senior apartments have always leased well, but today more luxury versions are coming online and leasing very well,” clarified Gonzalez. “In some cases, it’s residents just wanting to downsize and not carry another mortgage and, in others, it’s a second home near the grandkids. As the millennials start buying homes and getting out of the rental market, the 55+ population segment is just beginning to get into it.”

Registration for the webcast is available at MultifamilyBiz.com.

Manny Gonzalez is the managing principal for KTGY’s Los Angeles office. Gonzalez is responsible for the design, land plotting and production of residential and mixed-use developments throughout the U.S., including active adult and affordable multifamily communities. In 2016, Gonzalez was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects. Election to Fellowship recognizes not only his achievements as an individual architect but also his significant contributions to architecture and society on a national level. Gonzalez was also recognized in 2015 by Builder magazine for his legacy of delivering remarkable residential design with his induction into the prestigious Wm. S. Marvin Hall of Fame for Design Excellence.

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DETROIT, MI – FOURMIDABLE, a national real estate property management and brokerage firm, announced the opening of The Griswold located at 1117 Griswold Street, in the heart of Detroit’s central business district. The Griswold is Detroit’s first residential new Downtown construction project in 25 years.

The Griswold is a $24-million apartment community, which sits atop a 10-tale parking garage and retail structure, with 80 one, two and three-bedroom units occupying floors 11 – 15.  The apartment homes feature open floor plans with nine-foot-high ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, sealed concrete floors, state of the art heating and cooling and storage units.  All units boast unparalleled panoramic views of Downtown Detroit

“FOURMIDABLE is proud to have been selected as the Management Agent for The Griswold,” stated Michael Schocker, President of FOURMIDABLE. “This is the second project where we have worked with the Roxbury Group and are honored to be part of their vision to help revitalize housing in Detroit.”

The ribbon cutting took place on February 9, 2017 with Mayor Mike Duggan in attendance.  “The completion of The Griswold helps meet the growing demand for residential units Downtown,” said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. “The fact that we are starting to see new residential construction, to compliment the many residential building restorations already taking place, is a clear sign of an increasingly strong housing market in Detroit.” 

The developer is the Roxbury Group, Walbridge is the construction manager and Kraemer Design Group is the architect, all Detroit-based companies.

Apartments range from 750 to 1,600 square feet with rental rates from $1,030 to $3,500.

FOURMIDABLE is a national real estate management and brokerage company that specializes in managing, marketing and leasing market rate, tax credit, senior and family government helped, public housing and rural development apartment communities. Founded in 1975, FOURMIDABLE currently manages 87 communities in ten states, with more than 9,256 units under management.

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WASHINGTON, DC – Fannie Mae provided $55.3 billion in financing and supported 724,000 units of multifamily housing in 2016 – the highest volume in the history of its Delegated Underwriting and Servicing (DUS) program. The company also led the market last year with $54.9 billion worth of new issue mortgage-backed securities that attracted more investors purchasing DUS MBS than ever before and provided additional liquidity to the market with more than $10 billion in Guaranteed Multifamily Structures (Fannie Mae GeMS).

“I am proud of the business we did last year with our lenders and borrowers to support affordable and workforce housing across multifamily market segments. We achieved record volumes for Affordable, Green Financing, Student Housing, and Manufactured Housing Communities,” said Jeffery Hayward, Executive Vice President of Multifamily, Fannie Mae. “Our unique DUS risk-sharing model allows us to leverage lender delegation to do more business with greater certainty of execution, providing borrowers with quicker decisions and quicker loan closings. Inherent in this model is a reliance on strong partnerships – from borrower to lender to Fannie Mae to investor – and everyone has a vested interest to succeed.”

Fannie Mae Multifamily devoted significant resources in 2016 to invest in technology as part of an effort to support its business activities and will continue to make improvements to systems and processes in 2017. Additionally, the company introduced more frequent and transparent communication and collaboration opportunities to further enhance the customer experience and reinforce its partnerships.

“This is a relationship-based business – you need reliable, trusting partners to get deals done for borrowers and meet the needs of the rental housing market,” said Hilary Provinse, Senior Vice President for Multifamily Customer Engagement, Fannie Mae. “Whether borrowers are in need of portfolio management strategies or looking to make their properties more energy-efficient or solving for a complex affordable transaction, Fannie Mae has the financing solutions. Thanks to our 25 DUS Lender partners, we had a remarkable 2016 and we look forward to another fantastic year.”

The following top 10 DUS Lenders produced the highest business volumes in 2016.

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