Dane Bowler

Property fundamentals are the bread and butter of REIT investing, but a close second is management. While property-level data points are available in SEC filings, data on management quality is a bit harder to find. It doesn’t come in discreet numbers, instead consisting of strategy and problem solving. The 2026 REITweek conference was attended by nearly every publicly traded REIT, making it extremely valuable for assessing management teams.

Pareto upgrades are a key technique for improving yield on invested capital over time. This article will discuss what Pareto upgrades are, how to use them, and highlight real examples of how we improved yield on invested capital from 8.53% to 11.33% in under 2 years. We conclude with actionable opportunities available today. What is a Pareto upgrade? Pareto superiority is an economic concept in which one choice is better in at least one parameter while being at least equal in every other parameter.

The real estate M&A wave continues, this time with two multifamily giants combining in a merger of equals. Equity Residential (EQR) is absorbing Avalon Bay (AVB) in a stock-for-stock transaction, with each AVB share getting 2.793 shares of EQR. This article will examine the merits of the merger and discuss potential investment opportunities. Merger terms It is an all-stock transaction in which each will own roughly 50% of the combined company.