All posts by Brooke

Company News

New Division: York Standard AMC

We are pleased to announce the creation of York Standard AMC, a joint venture between York Properties, Inc. (“York”) and Standard Title, LLC (“Standard”).  The partnership provides full service receivership and substitute trustee services for troubled commercial assets.

By providing extensive real estate and asset management, accounting and legal experience, York Standard can take immediate control of and stabilize a troubled property as a receiver or manager for the mortgagee in possession. Our highly skilled team can also take over construction projects and properties in need of completion or renovation.

Download Marketing Brochure

www.yorkstandard.com

Company News

Welcome to the Team!

Mary Thaxton is a Triangle native and a graduate of East Carolina University with a degree in Communications.  She has a family background in construction/engineering and spent many years working as an office manager and bookkeeper for several local engineering companies.  Mary became an Association Manager in 2010.  She and her spouse have two cats (Chaplin & Lucy), two dogs (Patty & Marcy) and are glad to finally be returning to the Raleigh area.

As a York Association Manager Mary will oversee a portfolio of community associations.

Welcome aboard, Mary!

Market Insights

Top 5 Considerations When Drafting a new HOA Budget

With a booming housing market, York’s Association Management team has been busy advising developers on drafting strong, realistic HOA budgets.

You might notice that there are actually 6 takeaways below.  No one says “top 6” though….so we went with 5 and you can consider that last one a bonus!

  • Get Multiple Vendor Estimates. Increasing labor and material costs mean higher prices for everything from landscaping to pressure washing, maintenance and more.  Make sure to get several estimates and carefully consider the level of service your development will need.  Working with a management company like York can allow you to save on items such as insurance or waste removal by using their bulk purchasing discounts.
  • Set the Assessment to Cover Operating Expenses: It’s very common for new developments to set the assessment at a low rate with the developer funding expense shortfalls while building is ongoing. While the low rate is attractive to new buyers, it will eventually mean a large increase in the operating budget. As you can imagine, increased assessments mean unhappy homeowners, particularly if the increase is substantially higher than the original amount listed in the initial public offering.
  • Fund the Reserve Account:  Funding the Reserve Account for future expenses in the first and future budgets helps buyers recognize that the association is in good financial standing. We recommend a minimum reserve fund transfer annually equal 10% of the projected assessments, thereby protecting you and the homeowners from underfunded future capital expenses.
  • Don’t defer Maintenance. Don’t try to keep your homeowner fees low by deferring maintenance.  We recommend routine maintenance inspections are scheduled for your roofs, gutters, common area mechanical systems, lighting, fencing, parking and building exteriors.   In fact, most warranties require some type of inspection to keep the warranty validate.
  • Expect the unexpected. Even though your development will be new, unforeseen issues will arise. Try to anticipate what might need attention within the first years.  In our experience, new developments generally have issues arise around landscaping and pond maintenance Weather related issues that do not warrant an insurance claim can also add up.
  • Engage an association attorney to review your documents and budgets. Association Management attorneys are worth every penny to ensure you don’t overlook any items specific to your development.

 

Fun Stuff

Black History Month: Awesome Individual Highlight

Meet Brandi Weaver, founder of the WORLD L!T STREET FOOD FESTIVAL:

Brandi is a Charlotte, NC based creative and catalyst for change, championing cross-cultural exchange.  She is a Durham native and NC STATE grad, with fifteen-years as an engineer at Duke Energy. She recently traded in her STEM career for a focus on multiculturalism, working to bring the community together across cultural divides.  She founded a platform called WORLD L!T where she promotes and curates local cultural events.  Its purpose is to highlight the rich cultural fabric of her community and help guide people to opportunities to experience different cultures.  She feels very strongly that exposure to persons of different heritage within our own communities can help dissipate the divisiveness of ignorance, and thus make us stronger.

The highlight of her work was the WORLD L!T STREET FOOD FESTIVAL. She founded and produced this event which debuted in Charlotte, NC at Camp North End on September 2019 and attracted over 2400 attendees. The WORLD L!T STREET FOOD FESTIVAL was the manifestation of Brandi’s vision to give people a chance to connect and experience a variety of cultures. The goal was to curate a fun, experience that was enriching for US natives, as well as for those who have journeyed here from afar. Recognizing the challenges (economic and otherwise) faced by newer members of our community, the WORLD L!T STREET FOOD FESTIVAL was designed to give them a taste of home at one of Charlotte’s hottest venues.

Brandi is working to grow this festival to increase its impact on the greater community.

Company News

Retail happenings around the Triangle

Our brokerage crew has been hopping!  Check out what’s in store:

  • Over The Moon Playspace, a children’s educational and entertainment center, has just signed a lease at Village Square Shopping Center in Cary.  Look for them to open this summer.
  • Gateway Plaza Shopping Center off Crabtree Boulevard in Raleigh has two exciting shops coming soon.  In May Arrichion Hot Yoga will open their doors.   Later on in the year get ready for Wyatt’s Barbecue.  They’ve just leased 5,000 SF of space and we can’t wait to try it out!
  • Onward Reserve, a men’s casual clothing store, will have their grand opening in Cameron Village on April 3rd.  If you just can’t wait till April check out their website and promo for free ground shipping.
  • If you like vinyl records and beer, get ready to be delighted!  Hunky Dory, out of Durham, is opening a shop at 111 Seaboard in Raleigh.  They’re taking over the former Brew space, ETA 30 days.
  • Killjoy, a bar serving tailored cocktail experiences to all, will open in March at 116 N. West Street (just across from Clouds Brewing).   More about this unique concept here: https://raleighmag.com/2020/02/bar-for-al

 

That’s all for now.  Stay in the loop about all the good retail updates by subscribing to our monthly newsletter.  (Scroll to the bottom of most any page on our site – it’s down there.)

Fun Stuff

Black History Month: Joe Holt, Jr.

Throughout the month of February,  we are shining the light on African-American history and stories here in Raleigh and Wake County.

The excerpt below is from Smedes York’s upcoming book Raleigh: What We Remember, a collection of oral histories from Raleigh natives.  Joseph Holt, Jr. is one of the interviewees.  We expect Raleigh: What We Remember to hit shelves at Quail Ridge in the second quarter of the year.

Joseph Holt, Jr. family’s trail-blazing efforts on behalf of the Civil Rights Movement and the integration of Raleigh’s school began two years after the U. S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling declaring segregation in the nation’s public schools unconstitutional, and one month after the NC General Assembly enacted legislation (the Pearsall Plan) designed to thwart public school integration.  … The Holt struggle was a solitary one.  They became socially isolated, as many former friends, fearing white reprisals, began to distance themselves from the family.  Over the next several years [they] endured constant duress, experiencing intimidation and harassment from angry whites, receiving hate mail and threats on their lives from hate groups, enduring unreasonable demands from creditors, and suffering numerous economic reprisals.  His parents even received word that there was a plot to abduct their son.  The legal battle the Holts waged in federal court in the form of a suit against the Raleigh City School Board exhausted the family emotionally and physically.  The Holt fight ended in October 1959 when Joseph H. Holt, Jr. was in his senior year at J. W. Ligon Junior-Senior High School.