We’ve long had a foothold along the DC and New York corridor, and sought to add depth to serve our clients in the northeast. Boston is ripe for growth given heightened investor interest in the region.

Mike and Travis bring a broad skill set in disposition, acquisition, debt and equity placement, as well as strong relationships with investors and buyers.

“Our combination of experience encompasses investment sales, joint venture equity, and structured finance,” Mike said. “This allows us to approach the business with the mindset of an advisor, offering our combined knowledge of local market dynamics, capital flows, and transaction structures.”

“Joining Jones Lang LaSalle’s fast-growing multifamily practice will allow us to offer unparalleled service to both local and national owners,” added Travis.

Their hiring comes on the heels of adding sales and financing veteran Frank Petz. Additionally our recent sale of Fresh Pond Technology Park is the team’s fourth closing in the last 45 days.

Mike Coyne and Travis D’Amato

Are you stressed? I am. It’s not because of the work load this time. It’s about the funds according to my latest bank statement. I checked by paycheck and that’s not where the problem lies. Instead this is a classic case of credit card user error.

I use my credit card perhaps too well. ​Adding things up, it looks like that morning, mid-morning, and afternoon visit to Starbucks is really adding up. Having to pay that astronomical credit card bill every month simply doesn’t leave me with enough at the end of the day. Starbucks and a lot of other niceties, as it turns out, aren’t so nice after all. They’re stressing me out!

For this stress fest, instead of rolling out the yoga mat I’m pulling out a calculator and excel sheet.

-Noga

Haymarket Square Hotel is a thoughtful plan that creates a truly 24/7 destination. Much care has been given to the preservation of historic Haymarket, an open-air market that comes to town on Fridays and Saturdays to deliver fresh fruits, vegetables, fish and breads to the Boston community. The Hotel will vibrantly enhance the presence of Haymarket creating the opportunity for restaurants, a roof-top function facility, specialty shops, 180 moderately-priced hotel rooms, gardens and public meeting venues – all to serve as a civic anchor for community gathering.

Parcel 9 site is located between Hanover Street and North Street on the edge of the Greenway in downtown Boston.

Jones Lang LaSalle is excited by the opportunity to fulfill the City’s Market District plan, creating a public place for both visitors and residents alike. We welcome and appreciate public support from our colleagues and friends. MassDOT is accepting public comment on our proposal until June 3, 2012.  Comments may be sent by e-mail to MassDot.RE@dot.state.ma or by letter to the following address:

MassDOT
RE: Parcel 9
OREAD
10 Park Plaza, Suite 4170
Boston, MA 02116

More often than not we communicate through email messaging.  Efficient? Yes. Effective? Not always.

With technology at our fingertips in the office, at home and on the go, it is easy to quickly shoot out a note and assume that the message was received.

In the world of project management, so much depends on successful coordination which really comes down to communication. It’s important that your co-consultants and clients understand the point you are trying to get across via email.

Many times in the world of construction, email terminology gets misinterpreted. A simple phone call can bring clarity to an issue. A person’s tone of voice can enhance the message.

Don’t forget that we’re in the business of making and maintaining relationships. Our business thrives on this. You can easily shoot our client a weekly email update on a project. Instead, you could pick up the phone, share the update, and put a personal spin on the conversation showing your client that they are valued and deserve a personal one-on-one.

Think of the many times in your day where a phone call can be used to heighten your communication with your project team.  Try it. Let me know if you also acknowledge the power of a phone call.

-Chrissy

This post also appears on Matt’s personal blog http://mattgiffune.wordpress.com/.

To the tenant, a landlord is the guy that comes around and asks if everything is OK, sends you tickets to the game, and offers you space when you may not need it.

To the tenant rep broker the landlord is the guy that says “Bring your tenant to my building, we love paying brokers.” Or “We treat our tenants well, they will be in good hands.”  What landlords don’t necessarily broadcast is that they will do anything in their power to keep rents competitive and deal costs low. That is their business and that is completely fair.

From the tenant rep perspective,however, this presents a serious challenge – explaining to a tenant why they need a broker. That is a topic for another Boston Blog post, but the basic argument from the tenant rep is that if a landlord offers a tenant a “market deal,” there should be a commission imputed into the rent. And because “market deals” typically involve brokers, landlords expect to pay a commission on every deal. That is how they underwrite their investments. So when a landlord does not pay a commission and the tenant gets a “market deal,” the commission is left on the table for the landlord, and the landlord wins.

It isn’t stripped out of the rent or disclosed that it exists. Therefore tenants may actually end up paying a premium when dealing directly with their landlord.

-Matt

How do you keep tenants happy during a full lobby renovation? Odds are you aren’t going to keep them completely happy since there will be inevitable disruption and inconvenience along with accessibility and egress issues.

You have to first keep them focused on the end product and how nice the space will be once it is finished. Don’t forget to keep your messages upbeat by stressing the features and benefits the renovation will have on them once complete. During the renovation keep in mind a couple of important factors.

First, communication is key. Make sure that tenants are informed of what is going to take place every step of the way. Be sure to send out periodic updates on the progress of the renovation and any changes to the original scope. 
Make sure to schedule a preliminary meeting with the tenants to discuss how the renovation will affect their daily business operations and what they should expect. Be sure to clearly answer any questions or concerns they may have. Remember to keep everything positive and focus on the end result. 

Give tenants a visual display of what the project will look like once complete. Make sure these sketches are clearly displayed and show how the space will ultimately look. You can say how beautiful the space will look to the tenants all day, but images make it believable.

Keeping tenants happy during a renovation project is not easy, but with clear communication and collaboration headaches can be alleviated. Remember to focus on the positive and communicate every step of the way. Happy renovations!

-Chelsey

This post also appears on Matt’s personal blog http://mattgiffune.wordpress.com/.

Tenant representation is perhaps the most competitive arena within the commercial real estate brokerage industry. Real estate companies large and small are all chasing the same group of space occupiers through cold calling, relationship building, networking, entertaining, etc. There is only so much business to go around.

To tenants, brokers tend to all look and sound the same. Even exclusively tenant rep firms must compete with the traditional brokerages that represent landlords. No matter what you call yourself as a broker, you have competition coming from every angle. Tenants are very demanding of their service providers to deliver more solutions for lower cost. It’s a battle out there.

There is a hidden layer of competition for tenant rep brokers – landlords. Yes, landlords compete for tenant rep business. Not in the sense that they actually represent tenants, but they absorb commissions that are otherwise to be earned by brokers who advise tenants on renewals and sometimes new deals.

I’m not suggesting that this is at all wrong or unethical. I represent landlords as well as tenants. It is simply the nature of the business. If a landlord can negotiate a favorable deal without having to pay a broker, it’s in their best interest to do so. As a tenant rep broker, however, you should be aware that the sales path may actually take you through the landlord.

-Matt

The ground breaking has occurred on a 12,000 square foot Innovation Center in the middle of the Seaport District. This is the first part of the 23-acre Seaport Square development project.

Here, start-ups will be able to meet, share ideas and innovate. See the recent Boston Globe article. 

Mayor Menino is asking the community to select a name for the Center. The city has created a website for submissions. My pick is iSea Center. What do you think? 

Visit http://www.wherewillyougather.org to submit your idea. The name you select may be etched on the side of the building and be part of the District’s fabric forever.

Good luck.

-Lori

My Jones Lang LaSalle colleague Managing Director Scott Latimer was the next presenter at the MHA’s recent Healthcare Construction Conference. He began by describing his paradigm beyond zip codes for strategically locating physician and ambulatory networks based on statistical and psycho-demographic information.

In his case study of the Denver area, he found an uneven match between current sites and desired locations for serving its patient base. These types of mismatches are vital to successful location strategy, proper sizing and spacing per patient volume throughout.

Client panelists from Reliant Group and Beaumont Health System described their solution and positive results in working with Jones Lang LaSalle. They fielded questions from an audience of individuals responsible for their bottom line. I was impressed with the candor and new thinking expressed.

New England hospitals must do a better job of controlling cost and managing their real estate portfolios. Nationally the trend to consider real estate solutions is much more prevalent and accepted.

The New England market is now becoming aware. The changes will happen quickly. The use of strategic information and analysis to take advantage of market changes is part of the new way of thinking, forced by the current market difficulties.

-Tim

The mounting pressures on hospitals and corresponding real estate solutions were addressed at the Massachusetts Hospital Association’s annual Healthcare Construction Conference last Friday.  I served as moderator for a panel of my Jones Lang LaSalle colleagues, and clients titled Unlocking the Strategic Potential of Hospital Real Estate.

Industry expert Managing Director Richard Taylor kicked things off in the MHA’s new Conference Center with an outlook for hospitals 2012 and beyond. With margins between 0-2%, reimbursement (payments) sinking lower, and the uncertain future of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act overlaying all of this, the pressures on hospital administrators are palpable. Real estate significantly impacts a hospital’s balance sheet, and will play an important “non-clinical” role in higher efficiencies going forward.

Richard reviewed a six-step strategy for cost optimization beginning with a through audit of a hospital’s entire real estate portfolio. In a recent third party study that we commissioned through the Bloom Group, it was found that only 18% of hospital assets across the country are strategically managed. This, although strategically managed real estate has a four times greater likelihood to result in improved performance and higher margins.

Panelist and Capital Markets specialist Mindy Berman pointed out that demand for outpatient facilities is increasing, and that the financial market for this investment class is skyrocketing. By the year 2020, she expects it will represent 30% of the market. The key factor sustaining this and medical office growth is the need for institutions to add convenient, local and inexpensive locations to deliver higher percentages of appropriate care away from the major medical centers.

-Tim