Anna Robaton
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Writer and independent business journalist; NYC native; Moved to Portland, Ore., for the wine and coffee. Opinions are mine.
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Articles by Anna Robaton
Small City, Big Opportunity: Federal Realty Shapes Hoboken’s Future
SHARE On the surface, Hoboken, New Jersey, has long existed in the shadow of its much larger neighbor across the Hudson River, New York City. But this compact city of roughly 60,000 residents has a storied history and charm all its own—and now counts Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT) among its top property owners. Measuring roughly one square mile, Hoboken was once a vacation destination for New Yorkers and later a bustling port city and industrial hub.
CubeSmart Crafts Personalized Approach to Employee & Customer Engagement
SHARE CubeSmart (NYSE: CUBE) has sought to carve out a competitive edge by redefining what customer service looks like in the 21st century. The self-storage REIT’s drive to continually raise the bar on customer service has shaped nearly every aspect of the business, from technology investments to employee training. “We define a key component of our competitive advantage as the way we serve our customers.
Terravet Seeks Early Mover Advantage in Niche Property Market
SHARE Widespread pet ownership and advances in veterinary medicine have translated into increased spending on veterinary care. While this demand has drawn institutional investment into veterinary practices, ownership of the underlying real estate has generated less attention—and created an opportunity for Terravet REIT Inc. In 2012, Daniel Eisenstadt, then president of Community Veterinary Partners, led an acquisition that paved the way for the formation of Terravet, where today he serves as CEO.
What’s working in affordable housing — for tenants and investors | Institutional Real Estate, Inc.
Long before COVID-19 washed up on U.S. shores, a different kind of crisis plagued many Americans, the shortage of affordable housing. And long after the pandemic dissipates, the U.S. affordable housing crisis is expected to persist, if not worsen, creating ongoing opportunities for investors, provided property developers get it right.
Real estate investors are finding pockets of opportunity
Although the pandemic has created less distress in the real estate sector than investors initially anticipated, they’re finding pockets of opportunity in some of the hardest-hit corners of the market, including office and hospitality. According to Carly Tripp, global chief investment officer and head of investments for Nuveen Real Estate, distressed sales now account for less than 2 percent of total transactions.
How one institutional investor in real estate navigated the pandemic
For a glimpse of how the pandemic has shaped investors’ appetite for and approach to real estate, consider the recent experience of the New Mexico State Investment Council (SIC). When the pandemic struck, SIC had already done due diligence on several new real estate funds and, thus, was able to proceed as planned during the initial phase of the crisis. Later in the year, however, the $32 billion sovereign wealth fund decided to allocate capital to existing managers, with only one exception.
Climate change is moving from talking point to action word in retail real estate
When Joe Biden took office in January, he became the first U.S. president to make combating climate change a top priority. Yet, for years now, some of the largest companies in the country, including certain shopping center owners, already have...
Senior housing, post-COVID
Senior housing has long been considered a defensive sector, in other words one in which demand holds up relatively well during times of economic stress. The coronavirus pandemic has turned that assumption on its head. The pandemic has taken a disproportionate toll on the elderly and by extension senior housing, which not long ago was a darling among investors in commercial real estate.
The 5G economy: Fifth-generation wireless forecast to create untold opportunities for investors
With the global economy in a slump, the question on the minds of many investors is: What will it take to spur more robust growth? As with many things, finding answers is a matter of following the money. In doing so, it’s hard to overlook the billions that big telecom and tech firms are pouring into the development and deployment of the fifth generation of mobile network technology, or 5G.
REITs Take Steps to Increase Industry Diversity
REITs and commercial real estate have historically had a low percentage of Blacks and other people of color among the executive and corporate board ranks. Addressing racial diversity and inclusion has been a target of improvement for many years now, yet the killing of George Floyd in May, and the protests supporting social justice that followed, have brought those efforts into sharper focus as companies prioritize efforts to examine ways in which they can do more to address lingering inequality.
Women entrepreneurs don't need to go it alone
Even before starting a family, Brittney Castro worried that someday she might feel forced to choose between her career and her children, a dilemma to which many working parents can relate. So in late 2012, she left her job as a financial planner at an advisory firm and launched her own practice.
Fund of funds come to private wealth — again | Institutional Real Estate, Inc.
About a decade ago, pension plans and other institutional investors that wanted access to the rarified world of hedge or private equity funds often took an indirect route. Rather than picking funds themselves, they turned to funds of funds, which offer one-stop shopping when it comes to professional due diligence and portfolio management, as well as broad diversification across asset classes, investment styles, managers and more.
How to become a contact tracer, one of the fastest-growing jobs in America
The coronavirus pandemic has pushed more than 30 million Americans out of the workforce since mid-March. At the same time, it has turned contact tracing, a little-known public health technique, into a big job opportunity in parts of the country. As cities and states reopen their economies, many are quickly ramping up their contact-tracing capacity in an effort to keep a lid on Covid-19 infection rates.
Small businesses reinvent themselves to make products needed for the coronavirus crisis
A view of an empty restaurant is seen at Grand Central Station on March 25, 2020 in New York City. Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images Last summer Jon Poteet fulfilled a dream when he opened Shine Distillery & Grill, a 260-seat restaurant and micro-distillery in Portland, Oregon's historic Williams district. These days, however, rather than serving up regional cuisine and signature cocktails to a packed house, Poteet and his 25-person staff are doing a brisk business in private-label hand sanitizer.
Life Storage Embraces Digital Push
The process of leasing self-storage space at Life Storage Inc. (NYSE: LSI), one of the country’s oldest independent self-storage companies, is getting a digital makeover that highlights the REIT’s focus on innovative technology solutions to drive customer and revenue growth. The REIT’s fledgling Rent Now platform brings a convenient self-service model to a process that can be time-consuming and tedious.
REITs take on affordable housing problem
Housing Partnership Equity Trust (HPET) made its first acquisition in 2013, partnering with nonprofit Mercy Housing Inc. to acquire a low-rise 1970s-era apartment community that had become a neighborhood eyesore after years of neglect. After closing on the 128-unit property, located in a leafy, close-in Chicago suburb, HPET and Mercy Housing spent some $2 million to tackle a wide array of problems, from outdated energy and mechanical systems to peeling paint and mold.
The No. 1 thing every business owner needs to do to protect their legacy
Here's a question every entrepreneur ought to consider: What would happen to your business if one or more of your key employees died suddenly or could no longer work because of a disability? For many fledgling businesses, the loss of a key employee — whether a founder or top sales rep — can be fatal. Enter key man insurance, a form of business-to-business insurance that's intended to help a company or nonprofit survive if a critical employee dies prematurely or can't work because of a disability.
REIT ESG Leaders Raise the Bar
Nareit’s annual Leader in the Light Awards showcase those REITs that have produced superior, measurable results from the implementation of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices. “Since they were created in 1960, REITs have established a track record of superior sustainability practices.
Looks like more properties will trade in 2020
January 22, 2020 When Toys R Us filed for bankruptcy protection in late 2017, many saw the move as further evidence of the demise of brick-and-mortar retail. Raider Hill Advisors saw opportunity. In mid-2018, this private retail real estate investment and advisory firm became the exclusive real estate adviser to the retailer’s bankruptcy estate. The firm took on leasing, redevelopment and disposition of some 320 vacant big boxes across 46 states.
Innovation Districts Play Leading Part for Ventas
Earlier this year, Ventas, Inc. (NYSE: VTR) became a founding partner of a fledgling nonprofit institute that conducts research on innovation districts. The move isn’t merely an academic exercise. Over the last several years, the Chicago-based health care REIT has risen to become a major stakeholder in the nation’s burgeoning innovation districts—which some experts describe as the 21st century answer to the suburban corporate campus or research park. Ventas Chairman and CEO Debra A.
5 tips on how to woo a deep-pocketed angel investor to fund your big idea
Paisan191 | iStock / 360 | Getty Images Several years ago Bryanne Leeming had little more than a promising business idea and a prototype for a device to teach kids how to code through recess-style play. Today her Boston-based start-up has 10 employees, and its initial product, Unruly Splats, is used by schools in 45 states and six Canadian provinces.
How Apartment REITs Are Embracing New Technology for Tenants
The National Multifamily Housing Council’s 2017 Resident Preferences Survey found that more than half of respondents were “interested or very interested” in smart thermostats, smart lighting, and smart locks, and were willing to pay about $30 per month on average for such features. When UDR Inc.
The Waterfront is helping Vancouver, Wash., look its neighbor in the eye
Thousands turned out to a grand-opening celebration last fall to see the initial elements of Gramor’s ambitious and long-awaited undertaking on Vancouver’s waterfront — including its two flagship restaurants (WildFin American Grill, and Twigs Bistro & Martini Bar) and a new, half-mile-long park along the banks of the Columbia River. The park’s focal point is a dramatic, V-shaped pier suspended from cables and projecting nearly 100 feet over the river, which separates Washington and Oregon.
How Kilroy Realty is Lighting the Way for ESG Progress
Several years ago, Sara Neff, senior vice president of sustainability at Kilroy Realty Corp. (NYSE: KRC), had an epiphany while visiting the headquarters of the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Neff was visiting Chicago for a conference and took advantage of an unplanned opportunity to tour NAR’s in-house innovation lab, which was studying smart-home, renewable-energy, and other forms of technology.
Data Center REIT Equinix's 100 Percent Renewable Energy Goal
Equinix Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX), the global interconnection and data center REIT, marked its 17th birthday in 2015. That year, Equinix also took a bold step—becoming the first data center company to publicly commit to a goal of 100 percent renewable energy use across its portfolio. What prompted Equinix to set this ambitious goal?
PNLR Phillips Edison's Multifaceted Diversity Initiative
Nearly three years ago, Cathy Johnson joined public non-listed REIT Phillips Edison & Co., Inc. (PECO) after more than a decade with Weingarten Realty (NYSE: WRI). The move not only represented a positive step forward on her career path, but a chance for her to help elevate other women in commercial real estate.
PNLR Phillips Edison's New Diversity Initiative
Nearly three years ago, Cathy Johnson joined public non-listed REIT Phillips Edison & Co., Inc. (PECO) after more than a decade with Weingarten Realty (NYSE: WRI). The move not only represented a positive step forward on her career path, but a chance for her to help elevate other women in commercial real estate.
Farming REITs
In the late 1990s, Paul A. Pittman started investing in farmland in the manner that wealthy individuals have gone about it for years. A Wall Street investment banker at the time, Pittman set his sights on a rural market that he knew well and began buying property there. He eventually amassed a multimillion-dollar portfolio in Illinois, where he grew up in a farming family, and decided to start a farming operation.
Reven Housing REIT Focuses On Workforce Rental Market
In the aftermath of the financial crisis, Chad Carpenter came out of early retirement to get in on the ground floor of what’s been dubbed the institutionalization of single-family rental homes—a market long dominated by mom-and-pop investors.
Fast-changing retail is a dream assignment for CNBC’s Lauren Thomas
How did a recent college graduate land such a high-profile position in a field where reporters often spend years paying their dues? The answer, it seems, is personal drive, talent and a bit of luck. As a journalism student at the University of North Carolina, Thomas spent her summers in the high-pressure, New York City media market. Over the course of several summers, she interned at Bloomberg, CNBC and TheStreet.com.
San Francisco’s Ghirardelli Square gets a food-focused makeover
By 2013, when Jamestown L.P. — a real estate investment and management firm with headquarters in Atlanta and in Cologne, Germany — bought Ghirardelli Square, it had become largely a tourist draw. Jamestown now seeks to restore Ghirardelli Square as a magnet for locals and tourists alike. Ghirardelli Square receives some 9 million visitors yearly, according to Jamestown, which is perhaps best known for successfully repositioning New York City's mixed-use Chelsea Market.
Preparing for the $30 trillion great wealth transfer
The coming great wealth transfer of $30 trillion in assets from baby boomers to their heirs is creating challenges for clients and advisors alike.
College Search 101
Choosing a college is a difficult decision for many students. There are lots of factors to consider, from cost to location to reputation. For Pacific alumnus and experienced educator Tony Cox ’74, the personal connections he found at Pacific were what made the difference. Cox grew up poor in rural Oregon. He wasn’t a stellar student in high school, but knew he wanted to become a teacher and decided to put himself through college.
Equinix: A Giant Behind the Scenes of the Digital Age
Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX) President and CEO, Stephen Smith presides over a company of which many people haven’t heard. He has even lost count as to how many times his firm has been confused for the high-end health club chain Equinox. Yet, Smith maintains a sense of humor about such mix-ups, and it’s not hard to see why he can afford to chuckle. Equinix isn’t a household name yet, but it’s a giant of the digital age.
Want great maternity leave? Become an ironworker
Ironworking isn't a job typically associated with top-notch perks. Yet the relatively small number of women in the trade now have something in common with workers at some marquee Silicon Valley firms. And it's not free lattes or laundry service. Women ironworkers now enjoy one of the most generous maternity leave programs in the country: Six months of leave prior to delivery and up to eight weeks afterward.
Why firstborn kids are more likely to become CEOs
Why are some people more successful in their careers than others? As it turns out, our fates may be sealed long before we enter the workforce. A new study finds that birth order plays a big role in determining who makes it to the corner office. The study by Sandra Black, an economist and visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, contends that firstborn children are more likely than their siblings to eventually rise to become CEOs, government officials and others in high-ranking positions.
Biggest money worries keeping Americans up at night
Are you ready for retirement? If money worries had you tossing and turning last night, you’re in good company. Even with the U.S. economy rounding into shape, 65 percent of Americans say they lose sleep over financial concerns, according to a survey by CreditCards.com. That’s just four percentage points fewer than the share of Americans who had money-related insomnia back in 2009, when the economy was a hot mess.
The best color to wear for a job interview
According to information compiled by Glassdoor, employers are starting to ask questions designed to test your problem-solving and critical thinking skills on the spot According to information compiled by Glassdoo... 00:35 As if mentally preparing for a job interview isn’t stressful enough, deciding what to wear can take the pressure up a couple notches.
The best news about the job market no one is talking about
The stock market has trended upward since Election Day, stoked by optimism that President Donald Trump’s agenda will translate into stronger corporate earnings. While Wall Street may be having some second thoughts lately, the Trump bump seems to be taking hold on Main Street in the form of stronger hiring by bullish small and midsize employers.
Why so many Americans hate their jobs
With the U.S. economy on solid footing, American workers may be feeling better about their career prospects, but most aren’t thrilled with their actual jobs. In fact, two-thirds are disengaged at work, or worse, according to a new Gallup study on the American workplace. Of the country’s approximately 100 million full-time employees, 51 percent aren’t engaged at work -- meaning they feel no real connection to their jobs, and thus they tend to do the bare minimum.
Don't get too comfortable in your home office
If you’re reading this from the comfort of your home office, you may want to thank IBM for helping to make that possible. The technology giant that gave us the floppy disk, automated teller machine and Watson supercomputer has also been a trailblazer in terms of allowing employees to work remotely. IBM began allowing some of its employees to work at home during the Reagan era, and by 2009 40 percent of its 386,000 staffers worldwide were no longer tethered to a traditional office.
Avoiding this can sink a biz...but doesn't have to
In many cases, succession plans are also designed to ensure businesses survive and prosper when their current leaders are no longer in charge — because they either retired, met an untimely death or suddenly became unable to work.
New REIT Park Hotels & Resorts Aims High in the Lodging Marketplace
For many real estate companies, growth is a slow, methodical process. Just ask Thomas J. Baltimore Jr., who spent more than a decade growing the venerable RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE: RLJ) one deal at a time. Today, Baltimore—who co-founded RLJ in 2000 with entrepreneur Robert L. Johnson of BET fame—sits at the helm of a new hotel REIT, Park Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: PK), which in January became the second-largest player in its sector in one fell swoop following its Jan. 3 spinoff.
Clerical help wanted -- college degree required
A four-year college degree has long been seen as the ticket to a better life. These days, though, it may be your ticket to a job as a file clerk, at least initially. According a national survey by CareerBuilder, 41 percent of employers are hiring college grads for jobs that were once held largely by those with only a high school education. That figure is up from 37 percent of companies that reported doing so in a CareerBuilder survey released last year.
Fewer immigrants could mean fewer new homes
For Stephan Sardone, owner of a Dallas-based home remodeling company, “a day without immigrants” last month meant a day without one of his subcontractors on a job in the city’s affluent Preston Hollow neighborhood. Every one of the subcontractor’s employees skipped work on Feb. 16 to take part in an informal nationwide strike designed to highlight the importance of foreign-born workers to the U.S. economy and protest President Trump’s immigration agenda.
Age discrimination is alive and well
A half-century has passed since the federal government enacted a law designed to protect workers from employment discrimination based on age. Yet one of the largest-ever studies on age discrimination in hiring has found that the problem persists, and it’s worse for women than for men. Older job seekers often suspect they’re victims of age discrimination in hiring, but trying to prove it is another matter.
Most Americans are hourly workers
2/17: MoneyWatch Whether by choice or necessity, millions of Americans punch a clock every day. According to the latest Labor Department data, more than 78 million Americans -- or nearly 59 percent of the U.S. workforce -- are now paid on an hourly basis.
Promises, problems on horizon as $30T wealth transfer looms
Still, relatively few Americans have long-term care insurance, partly because the premiums can be hefty, especially for those with poor health histories. Many people simply underestimate the cost of long-term care or would rather not think about maybe needing it someday. Medicare typically provides limited long-term care coverage, and to qualify for Medicaid, it may be necessary to spend down your assets, said Carter.
Promises, problems on horizon as $30T wealth transfer looms
Still, relatively few Americans have long-term care insurance, partly because the premiums can be hefty, especially for those with poor health histories. Many people simply underestimate the cost of long-term care or would rather not think about maybe needing it someday. Medicare typically provides limited long-term care coverage, and to qualify for Medicaid, it may be necessary to spend down your assets, said Carter.
The $30 Trillion Baby Boomer Wealth Transfer Looms | RealClearMarkets
The $30 Trillion Baby Boomer Wealth Transfer Looms The coming transfer of $30 trillion in assets from baby boomers to their heirs is creating challenges for clients and advisors alike.Read Full Article »
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