FROM THE PRESIDENT
MARY WESSLER | CONAM COLORADO
Big Numbers, Big Irony for 2015
300,000!!
As we ring-in 2015, the Metro Denver apartment inventory reached
a huge milestone of going over 300,000 apartment homes! Through a
century and a half of building apartments, we thought it would be fun to
look back at when Denver hit other key milestones:
200,000 UNITS
It was mid 1986 when Denver landed 200,000 apartment homes. So
it took roughly 28 years to build the last 100,000 (which is about 3,500
per year). What was going on when we hit 200,000 apartment homes?
“Well”, President Reagan signed an Immigration Reform and Control Act
(ironic). Tom Cruise was “feeling the need for speed” in Top Gun, while
Mission Impossible 5 is supposed to be released this year. In 1986, hand
held camcorders started to become a household item - just think about
how those compare to today’s smart phones/cameras. The Cosby Show was
TV’s top rated show (looks like a huge fall from grace for “Cliff Huxtable”
in 2015). The Dow was only 1,895 then, while it might be over 18,000
by the time this issue is printed. In 1986, the average rent in Denver was
$408 and average vacancies were approximately 12% (ouch)!
100,000 UNITS
It’s estimated Denver had roughly 100,000 apartment homes in 1968,
the year AAMD was chartered. A popular slogan of the day was “You’ve
come a long way, baby” - Virginia Slims Cigarettes… Look how far pot
has come since 1968. The Cost of a Super Bowl ad in 1968 was $54,000.
This year it will cost $4.5 million per spot! That is 83 times more! Average rents were $130 per month (multiple that by 83…). Tragic news of
Martin Luther King’s assassination provoked outbreaks of racial violence,
resulting in more than 40 deaths nationwide. And in December of 1968
Marvin Gaye’s “I Heard It through the Grapevine” topped the charts!
Speaking of the grapevine, it sounds like about FIFTY new communities
are scheduled to open in 2015. Construction cranes will continue to wheel
around materials and frame the Denver Skyline as they add a likely 10,000
more apartment homes to the Metro Denver inventory. Several of the new
communities that will be opening up are located in Downtown Denver and
in the Tech Center, but are also dotted throughout the metro area in niche
locations. See page 16 for a little more information about some key communities that will be opening up.
HOW MUCH RENT?
$4.14 BILLION in rent will be collected this year in Metro Denver, assuming an average rent of $1,150 x 300,000 apartment homes. That compares
to $150 Million in 1968. Yes, we definitely have come a long way baby…
especially when you consider the average sales prices of apartment communities today! We manage assets that value in excess of
40,000,000,000!!! That’s forty billion dollars worth of assets our teams
manage and care for, and a forty billion dollar industry our association is
protecting and promoting! Nothing ironic about that! It shows not only
how interesting and fun our industry is, but how BIG it is!
LOOKING AHEAD
As we look ahead to what 2015 will offer, I am sure it will bring unpredicted challenges, obstacles and some irony too. However, the New Year will
also bring fresh opportunities! As we start the New Year, it gives us a chance
to renew our core values and principles which have made us successful. A
new year allows for renewed optimism and anticipation to reach new milestones and goals! All of us wish you and yours an amazing and successful
2015 – a record setting year for all!
Mary Wessler
2014-2015 AAMD President
Mark Your Calendar for AAMD’s 2015 Events
“SEEKING BALANCE”:
ECONOMIC CONFERENCE
EDUCATION CONFERENCE
& TRADE SHOW
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
MAINTENANCE OLYMPICS
JUNE AWARDS
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Thursday, June 18, 2015
SUMMER ECON
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
GOLF TOURNAMENT
Friday, August 7, 2015
CHILI COOKOFF
Saturday, October 10, 2015
TRIBUTES 2015
Friday, November 6, 2015
All dates are subject to change
6 | TRENDS • JANUARY 2015
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