Cleveland's own Jeffrey Friedman explains why conditions are now optimal for apartment development and acquisition.

Same story, different asset class

A story in Reuters today highlights the same buying problems and trends in multi-family that medical assets have experienced. The large players are going after the best-in-class assets, driving cap rates down while becoming unhappy with the properties coming to market. At some point, hopefully these trends translate into some interest for properties that aren't considered platinum. There are still very stable properties that are solid investments, whether in multi-family or medical.

Apartment Acqusition Shows Distressed and Multi-Family Interest

Equity Residential purchased a 559-unit complex in Washington, DC, reported on by Globsest.com, for $167 million. For a complex that's totally vacant, nearly $300,000 per unit seems a tad rich, but Equity Residential must feel they will stablize it fairly quickly. Good luck.