AAOC Finds Profit in the Margins

You’ve heard it a dozen times from every business advisor from Warren Buffet to the local MLM pitch — Your profit is found in the margins. The key is identifying where the margins are in your business model. As in any evaluation — success is found in the margins you can capitalize on.

In multifamily housing, your margins are varied depending upon the different features at each of your properties, but some are relatively standard —

• Standardized paints and carpets purchased at in bulk.

• Standard room layouts, such that utility repairs and hardware can be stockpiled

Some of these margins are found in identifying changes in the laws —

• The emergence and expansion of RUBS to handle your utility billing

• Changes to pet deposits and fees

Some are complete departures from previous land uses —

• Growth of Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) approvals to increase unit counts

• Emergence of Short Term Rentals as a potential use case for apartment buildings and vacancies

Obviously, not each option is going to apply to every particular property and in every particular instance. The point is you find the margins that work for you, and you exploit them.

The Application

Somewhat by nature, trade associations are digging for those margins, seeking to be increasingly effective on behalf of its members if they can find a particular way to strengthen how they represent their members. When it comes to political activity, that’s becoming increasingly challenging given that the costs of elections continue to skyrocket. However, as AAOC has looked at the margins, we have identified two areas upon which we will begin focusing in 2023 that will serve its members on both the advocacy and political fronts.

AREA 1 — The Effect of Just Cause Eviction Laws on Human Trafficking

While hotels and motels are often considered hubs for human trafficking operations, multifamily rental communities of all classes and types are also commonly used for this purpose. Residential units that are meant to provide safe and secure housing for individuals and families are often used for unspeakable illicit activities — hiding in plain sight.

So, what could you do about it if it was happening in your community?

Effectively nothing.

As a result of the provisions contained in laws such as “Just Cause Eviction,” unless you personally witness a crime occurring, you have little-to-no recourse to stop human trafficking in your community. You can offer no safety to the children or young people (girls and boys) living in the community where the crimes are taking place, let alone to any of the victims who reside in the unit where such activity is occurring. You can offer no reassurance to the working single parents in your community that their kids won’t get swept up and possibly exploited while mom or dad are away.

This law needs to be reformed —and AAOC will be working with local elected officials and public safety agencies to advocate for change and expand efforts to educate and protect our communities.

AREA 2 — Accurate and Engaged Communities

Following the November 2022 election, AAOC and its coalitions partners have examined not only what went right, but also what went wrong, what could be done better, and what shifts in voting have occurred for which we should be aware and prepared for moving forward. Our goal is better engagement with the community on policies that affect them.

However, through this deep dive, we have discovered a number of interesting datapoints that require further research and analysis:

• Several precincts had abnormal voting rates — both high and low

• Several precincts with high volumes of multifamily properties had abnormal turnouts

• Several areas in town had abnormal