Millennial Kitchens are For Looking and Not Cooking

Posted on August 31, 2014 by PMI Properties

1920s Small Duplex Kitchen, Hollywood

Kitchens, even in apartments, were an important room in the old days. Prior to the 1950s, apartments had large kitchen with space for a breakfast table (see above picture).

After 1940s and on, kitchen were relegated to galleys with maybe a pass thru eating bar. But the kitchen was still large enough to prepare the Thanksgiving dinner (see pictures below).

1960 Galley Kitchen

1960s Apartment Kitchen With Pass Thru

Now developers are again shrinking the apartment kitchen further. Kitchens are are no longer hidden in a separate room or a galley but front and center in the great room. Many millennials no longer cook meals but bring home takeout, throw something into the microwave or toaster over, or eat out. The kitchen’s have been reduced to grand coffee bars. Kitchens must look better than before. Kitchen are showpieces with contemporary cabinets, quartz countertops, and stainless steel appliances (see pictures below).

2013 Renovated Kitchen of the Above 1920 Duplex Kitchen

2013 PMI/Adaptive Kitchen in the 1920 renovated Hollywood Duplex above

2014 PMI/Adaptive Renovated Apartment Kitchen, Echo Park

2013-04-03 19.14.37 Kitchen In New Stella Apartments, Marina Del Rey

New Icis Apartments Glendale

New Eleve Lofts Glendale

Bellevue Lofts Echo Park

New Wilshire Vermont Apartments, Koreatown

Kitchen in the hallway at Luxe on 4th Street, Santa Monica

7950 Sunset, West Hollywood

Station House
San Francisco

Avalon Apartments, San Francisco

A New Credit Tool for Residential Landlords.

Posted on August 24, 2014 by PMI Properties

Now California residential landlords have a new tool to improve tenant credit and reduce evictions. Experian and Transunion have started adding rent payment data to credit profiles. Landlords can use this information to discern dead beats from tenants more likely to pay their rent and on time. This tool comes at a time when evictions are taking longer and have become more expensive. California State cutbacks have significantly increased the time it takes landlords to get an eviction proceeding. Tenants now have the right to demand jury trials that can spiral costs.

At one time, credit companies reported filed eviction actions against tenants. Landlords refused to rent to tenants who had such evictions filed against them. This service was a very effective method to discern good from bad tenants. Tenant advocacy groups convinced legislators that this method was unfair since landlords could unjustly file evictions. So now, the credit companies can only file evictions that go to judgement. Bad tenants beat the system by moving out just before the eviction court date and thereby avoid a judgement on their record. Today it could take three to five months to get a court date. The next landlord would never know that the tenant was in eviction because without a judgement, a tenant’s credit score is not impacted.

With the new service, Landlords may be able to discern such deadbeats from rent payment histories. Further, tenants will have a powerful incentive to pay their rent on time because if they don’t, their non payment or late payment will be reported on their credit and will impact their credit.

The catch for landlords is that to use the service, landlords need to sign up with an online payment service like Rent Track and pay $1.95 per month per tenant. Rent Track is an automatic online bank payment service. Rent Track alerts you the moment tenants have paid. Funds deposit within 24-72 hours. However, the tenant needs to opt in to rent payment reporting

However, if the landlord turns uncollected rent over to collection agencies, the collection agencies can report the uncollected rent to the credit companies. Once the collection appears on a credit history, it will stay there for seven years and drop a credit score.

Unfortunately, such collection information is not routinely reported. The online payment services may change this practice. You may read more in the Los Angeles Times article below .

Experian, TransUnion start adding rent payment data to credit profiles – LA Times.

Indie Rock Scene Helps Fuel Northeast Los Angeles Gentrification

Posted on August 17, 2014 by PMI Properties

Pundits have identified several precursors of gentrification. One precursor is artists moving to a new neighborhood: Soho, Venice, Chelsea. In Northeast Los Angeles (Echo Park, Silver Lake, Highland Park, and Eagle Rock), the rising indie music industry has helped fuel Northeast Los Angeles gentrification. According to a Los Angeles Times article (Sunday, August 17, 2014, E5), the area in Northeast Los Angles is home to many of he city’s most successful independent labels. Combined, the area has become its own little epicenter, and one of its strengths fuzzy, strange rock as delivered by indie artists and bands. According to the LA Times, a notable number have recently relocated from San Francisco. “Everyone we know, pretty much,from San Francisco moved down here, said prolific rocker Ty Segall. “People are moving down here because there’s a lot of stuff going on and its cheaper–a lot cheaper,” explained Segal of the migration.

Seven out of LA Weekly’s ten top rock clubs are located in Hollywood, Silver Lake, Echo Park, and Downtown. The remaining three are in West Hollywood. Even Sunset Strip’s rock clubs have noted a loss of business to Silver Lake’s emerging indie rock clubs. Young creatives now go east for a unique variety of night life not currently found elsewhere in Los Angeles.

Echo Park Rising is a indie music event in it’s 4th year that focuses on the music, creativity, diversity and small businesses of Echo Park http://epr.la/. There were multiple stages and activities throughout the weekend of August 15, 2014, located on the main routes of Sunset Blvd, Glendale Blvd, Alvarado Avenue and Echo Park Avenue and beyond . Here are some pictures from the event.

At the Cafe Bookstore

Cafe at the Bookstoe

Hanging Out

Crowds in Front of a Club

Crowds Waiting to Get Into a Venue

A line in front of another Indie Rock Club

Jeffrey Palmer was a guest panelist at Bisnow’s Creative Office Summit in Los Angeles

Posted on August 5, 2014 by PMI Properties

Read the Article Here:

http://www.bisnow.com/commercial-real-estate/los-angeles/2500-the-office-space-that-wears-it-well/

PMI Appoints A New Asset Manager

Posted on August 5, 2014 by PMI Properties

I am pleased to announcement our new asset manager, Gabrielle Hakimian.

Gabrielle Hakimian will responsible for all asset management functions across PMI’s commercial and creative multifamily portfolio in Southern California and San Francisco. She has seven years of diverse domestic and international commercial real estate experience, across office, industrial, and mixed-use assets. Prior to joining PMI, she managed real estate transactions for The Walt Disney Company, by providing and executing strategic solutions on leased assets throughout the United States. Also, while working with Jamison Services, she directed all daily operations, with responsibilities for over 1-million square feet of office, retail, and parking in Downtown, Los Angeles.

Gabrielle holds a Masters in Real Estate Development from New York University and Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from University of Southern California.

What is Creative Office?

Posted on August 3, 2014 by PMI Properties

3525 Eastham, Culver City

Creative office is defined broadly as non-traditional office. A “traditional office” has eight to nine foot acoustical dropped ceilings with two-by-four foot parabolic or prismatic fluorescent lighting, drywall walls, and carpeted floor with three per thousand square foot of enclosed offices. Creative offices usually have higher ceilings that are open to the structural lids; with pendant lighting; floors with wood or polished concrete; and maybe some walls with brick, block, or concrete. Broader definitions incorporate collaborative space plans and lifestyles associated with Millennials.

PMI’s Eastham space, a converted warehouse in Culver City, exhibits the fundamental most look for in a creative office: a high bow truss ceiling, pendant lights, polished concrete floors, and cement walls on the inside of the exterior perimeter walls.

It is difficult to accomplish a creative look with low acoustical ceilings and two-by-four fluorescent lights. Larger tech companies are more inclined to try. One tech company used numerous flags hanging from acoustical ceilings to make their space look creative. Others have tried to accomplish the same goal by painting their walls with bright colors.

The Google space below displays high ceilings, funky furniture, bright colors, recessed lighting, and concrete floors but keeps the acoustical tiles:

In the picture below,Google attempt to accomplish a creative feels with higher ceilings and the placement of the desks.

Google attempts a creative feel with high ceilings and a wall mural but keeps the acoustical tiles.

PMI Properties

Creative Spaces for Creative People

Monthly Archives: August 2014