IREM made its presence known as leadership team members presented in several sessions. 2024 IREM President Libby Ekre, CPM®, 2024 President-Elect Dawn Carpenter, CPM®, and 2024 Secretary/Treasurer Mindy Gronbeck, CPM®, CCIM, CSM, CRX hosted an informative EdXpress session on the impacts of skyrocketing property insurance costs on residential and commercial properties. Speaking from personal experience, panel members shared what they’ve learned managing properties all over the country.
“From the east coast to the west coast, we’re seeing prices rise. In some places 300%, like in Florida. You can’t write that into a pro forma, you really have to figure out how to make that work”, Libby Ekre stressed as she described the extent of the insurance problem.
Luckily, members of the panel were able to provide helpful recommendations, including highlighting the advantage of having a designation like the IREM CPM®. Insurance providers are willing to provide a better rate to individuals who have the designation since they’re considered more educated than the average property manager.
At the conference’s Property Management Forum, Ted Thurn, Senior Director, Government Affairs, was joined by forum chair Angelina Scarcelli, CPM®, CCIM, and realtors Jeff Ledford and David Stark to discuss the challenges property managers are currently facing. The panel touched on a number of these barriers such as just cause evictions, rental registries, relocation payments, and fair chance housing.
To combat these challenges, David Stark, Bay East Associatin of Realtors, spoke to the audience on five ways to be proactive. This included working with your state and local advocacy professionals, building and maintaining a coalition of housing providers, defining goals and what you’re willing to compromise on, working with policymakers, and telling compelling stories to illustrate your perspective. Ultimately, property owners and managers must be able to convey their “why” effectively.
When IREM was not presenting, members attended sessions such as the Advocacy Scoop, which provided an in-depth analysis of the election results and NAR’s involvement in campaigns across the country. Podcast hosts Shannon McGahn & Jon Waclawski spotlighted the many advocacy “wins” the organization has had in 2024. This included a 98% success rate for RPAC-supported candidates in the 2024 election cycle. To view all of NAR’s political advocacy wins, visit https://www.nar.realtor/advocacy/nar-advocacy-wins.
2024 IREM President-Elect Dawn Carpenter, CPM®, took the stage Sunday, November 10, for Leading the Charge in the Fight for More Affordable Housing. With a staggering shortage of affordable homes in the United States today, Dawn explored solutions to help alleviate this national issue.
Lastly, NAR’s Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun discussed the state of the U.S. economy and its impact on commercial and residential real estate. Dr. Yun expressed cautionary optimism as he addressed the audience. Despite many challenges last year, Dr. Yun predicts six to eight interest cuts in the upcoming two years, signaling economic improvement. However, he feels mortgage rates will remain high unless the new administration creates a plan to reduce the federal budget deficit.
Did you miss Dr. Yun at NAR NXT but want to learn more about economic trends for 2025? Register for IREM’s Advocacy Impact Day on February 25 and 26 to hear Dr. Yun provide an updated economic outlook. Visit the 2025 AID webpage to learn more and register for this impactful event.