Equity release now seen as a mainstream financial option of older home owners

Equity Release Council | April 02, 2019

The importance of unlocking housing wealth to meet consumer needs in later life and continuing product innovation are ensuring equity release occupies an increasingly central role in the UK, a new report shows.

The Spring Market Report from the Equity Release Council shows that over the course of 2018, home owners over 55 years of age accessed 50 pence of housing wealth for every £1 of savings withdrawn through flexible pension payments, highlighting the increasing role of property wealth as a supplementary source of later life funds.

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GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum Names GID Industrial among its Influencers in Industrial Real Estate

prnewswire | September 14, 2023

GID, a real estate owner and fiduciary that invests in multiple asset classes, has announced that its industrial team, GID Industrial, has been named a 2023 Influencer in Industrial by GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum. This award recognizes distinguished individuals, teams, and companies for notable achievements within the industrial real estate sector. "GID Industrial is honored to receive this prestigious recognition," says Rene Circ, co-head of GID Industrial. "In the three years since we formed our team, we have built an impressive portfolio that has sustained occupancy and offers potential for continued rent growth. We aim to continue our portfolio expansion, targeting opportunities that offer strong potential for long-term growth." GID has been active in the industrial sector since 1986 and officially launched its industrial platform in 2020. In the three years after the platform's launch, the team has accomplished significant growth within the sector, executing stabilized, value-add, and development transactions. This diverse mix allows the team to provide its partners with investment opportunities tailored to their unique risk and return preferences. The platform currently operates more than 25M square feet of industrial space in top markets across the country. "GID Industrial's key differentiator is the expertise and passion of our team," says Michael Wenaas, co-head of GID Industrial. "With 30 individuals boasting an average of 21 years of experience in the sector, our team is well equipped to provide unique value to our partners by offering a practiced, holistic perspective on the state of the industry. Our achievements over the last three years are a credit to the powerhouse team that we have assembled." GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum Influencers in Industrial are selected by its editors based on nominations that outline the nominee's accomplishments and impact on the sector. About GID GID is a leading real estate investment and management firm that operates a diverse portfolio of multifamily, industrial, and mixed-use developments across the United States. With over 60 years of experience across multiple asset classes, GID is an established real estate private equity investor and fiduciary supported by an integrated operating platform with approximately 54,000 multifamily units and over 25M square feet of industrial and commercial space of assets under management. The company also operates a credit platform that aims to provide commercial real estate debt solutions for institutional borrowers.  With corporate offices in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, New York City, and San Francisco, GID employs over 1,200 real estate professionals and operates an expansive portfolio of existing and under-development properties valued at over $30.1 billion1 as of June 2023.    1 Assets Under Management is calculated in compliance with the definition for Assets Under Management ("AUM") prescribed in INREV's Global Definitions Database.

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Real Estate Technology

TurboTenant launches feature leveraging artificial intelligence to write rental property listings

PR News Wire | August 31, 2023

As the race to maximize AI across nearly every industry continues, TurboTenant, the leading all-in-one landlord software, recently launched a feature that harnesses AI to allow landlords to craft their rental listings. Powered by OpenAI, this new tool simplifies one of rental property management's most significant challenges. When landlords enter basic property information, TurboTenant's AI Property Description personalizes a captivating listing description in less than five seconds. Leveraging open-source data to pull in unique qualities that appeal to today's renters, the AI professionalizes listing descriptions and streamlines the marketing process to find quality tenants. Plus, this AI is trained to comply with the Fair Housing Act — a major win for landlords everywhere. "Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT are like magic. You ask AI to do something, and the tool easily completes your task," said Max O'Rourke, Senior Product Manager at TurboTenant. "That's a big reason we built the AI Property Description feature with OpenAI — we want our landlords to feel like magicians when they create a new listing." The free AI Property Description feature is the latest update to TurboTenant's versatile rental property management platform. Listings are a landlord's first chance to catch potential tenants' eyes, and this latest feature simplifies the process significantly. According to a recent Forbes Advisory survey, over 64% of businesses report AI increases their productivity. AI Property Description is just one of the many features TurboTenant has launched to streamline, professionalize, and simplify the administrative side of being a landlord. "Harnessing the power of AI for property description and listing title generation is just the tip of the iceberg," said O'Rourke. "Building a feature like this is just another example of TurboTenant's commitment to innovation and better serving our users." About TurboTenant Built by landlords for landlords, TurboTenant empowers independent property managers at every step of the rental process. More than 550,000 independent landlords nationwide enjoy TurboTenant's free, all-in-one online property management solutions. Features offered by TurboTenant include rental applications, tenant screening, property marketing, rent payments, lease agreements, and rent reporting.

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Real Estate Advice

SmartRent Selects ADI Global Distribution as Preferred Distribution Partner

Businessiwire | August 11, 2023

SmartRent, Inc. (“SmartRent” or the “Company”), a leading provider of smart home and property operations solutions for the rental housing industry, has entered into an agreement with ADI Global Distribution, a Resideo Technologies, Inc. company, to serve as its preferred distribution partner. A leading distributor of security, AV and low-voltage products, ADI's expansive network allows for efficient and timely order fulfillment for SmartRent’s 500+ rental housing customers, fortifying the Company’s inventory and distribution activities, and enabling it to streamline inventory management and enhance product availability. “Demand for our solutions remains robust, and it’s imperative that we are able to meet the needs of our customers while continuing to prioritize the innovation and product enhancements that keep us at the forefront of the industry,” said SmartRent CEO Lucas Haldeman. “ADI is one of the most trusted names in the space, and we are proud to partner with them to meet our fulfillment needs and exceed customer expectations. This expanded relationship with ADI strengthens our overall partnership with Resideo.” ADI was selected for its best-in-class operations, extensive product portfolio and local inventory availability. ADI has been supplying SmartRent with more than 100,000 Resideo thermostats per year, and this agreement will expand across the full product offering. In addition to prompt order fulfillment, the multiyear agreement provides SmartRent with needed hardware on demand while reducing its cash investment in inventory. Over time, SmartRent anticipates the decrease in on hand inventory will increase its cash balances. "ADI is committed to serving as the indispensable partner of choice for our customers," said Rob Aarnes, President of ADI Global Distribution. "We're excited to expand upon our relationship with SmartRent to help them navigate their product needs and drive toward long-term business goals, while also resulting in incremental revenue growth for ADI." About SmartRent Founded in 2017, SmartRent, Inc. is a leading provider of smart home and smart property solutions for the rental housing industry. The company’s unmatched platform, comprised of smart hardware and cloud-based SaaS solutions, gives operators seamless visibility and control over real estate assets, empowering them to simplify operations, automate workflows, benefit from additional revenue opportunities and deliver exceptional site team and resident experiences. SmartRent serves 15 of the top 20 multifamily owners and operators, and its solutions enable millions of users to live smarter every day. About ADI ADI Global Distribution, a Resideo company, is a leading distributor of security, AV and low-voltage products serving more than 100,000 customers across North America, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. Leading pros rely on ADI for our wide selection of top brands, immediate product availability, knowledgeable sales staff and our product, design and support. Customers can shop ADI through its Digital Branch, mobile app and in more than 200 stocking locations. ADI solutions include Intrusion & Smart Home, Fire, Video Surveillance, Access Control & Communications, Residential AV, Pro AV, Networking, Data Communications, Power, Central Vacuum, Structured Wiring, Wire & Cable, and Tools & Hardware.

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Brokerage, Real Estate Investment

Voxtur Announces Closing of Non-Brokered Private Placement of Units

Yahoo Finance | August 09, 2023

Voxtur Analytics Corp. ("Voxtur" or the "Company"), a North American technology company creating a more transparent and accessible real estate lending ecosystem, is pleased to announce, further to the releases issued on June 26, 2023, and August 2, 2023, the closing of an additional $6,448,353 of gross proceeds from a non-brokered private placement of units (the “Offering”). With respect to recent prior private placements, the Company closed on $3,052,699 of Units on June 26, 2023, and another $942,000 of Units on August 2, 2023, for an aggregate amount of $10,443,052 of gross proceeds closed under the offerings. The Offering consists of a non-brokered private placement of units (each, a "Unit") at a price of $0.20 per Unit. Each Unit is comprised of one common share of the Company and one common share purchase warrant (each, a “Warrant”). Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to acquire one common share of the Company at a price of $0.20 expiring on June 26, 2028. The Company has agreed that following the closing it will apply to the TSX Venture Exchange (“TSXV”) to list the Warrants, subject to meeting the applicable distribution and listing requirements of the TSXV. The Company may issue up to an additional $9.55 million of Units pursuant to the Offering, though there is no assurance that additional commitments will be received by the Company or that additional closings under the Offering will be completed. Any such closings that are completed are subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the TSXV. The proceeds from the Offering will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes. All securities issued in connection with the Offering are subject to a four month and a day hold period from the date of issue in accordance with applicable securities laws. Further, the listing of the Warrants is subject to the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the TSXV. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities. The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the securities laws of any state and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to or for the benefit or account of U.S. persons, absent such registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. About Voxtur Voxtur is a transformational real estate technology company that is redefining industry standards in a dynamic lending environment. The Company offers targeted data analytics to simplify tax solutions, property valuation and settlement services throughout the lending lifecycle for investors, lenders, government agencies and servicers. Voxtur's proprietary data hub and workflow platforms more accurately and efficiently value assets, originate and service loans, securitize portfolios and evaluate tax assessments. The Company serves the property lending and property tax sectors, both public and private, in the United States and Canada.

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