Anyone work for a Family Office? Want to talk shop and bitch about office politics?
I was just appointed head of operations of a CRE family office portfolio (all office) and I have an uphill battle of getting things organized.  Anyone willing to help a brother out and brainstorm some efficiency/streamlining ideas?
[{"id": "cr7gz8p", "text": "I am trying to understand commercial real estate myself.  Have a class on Friday from 9-5. Realtor in Florida.  I'm down to have a chat.  It's always good to learn.", "replies": [{"id": "cr84ydq", "text": "How old are you?  What type of experience?\n\nWhat type of asset class interests you the most?", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cr7pscr", "text": "Approximately what is the total $AUM of the office portfolio?\nWhere is the portfolio located?\n\nDo you manage in-house or are you paying a management service? \nIf management service, what are your typical mgmt service fees?\nDo you do in-house leasing or are you paying a brokerage?\nWhere do you see commissions landing on that?\n\nHow is your vacancy?\nWhat is the most irritating non-standard Capex payment you are seeing with your portfolio? \nHow many assets?\nAre you doing any value add work ?(development/redevelopment/significant capex)\n\nDo you see any need to expand into other product types?\nWhat accounting systems do you use?\n\nHow do distributions work? Were you given any equity or are you straight salaried?\n\n\nHope this helps :)", "replies": [{"id": "cr84xma", "text": "AUM = $250MM and change in the Bay Area\n\nWe manage in house and that is part of what I am trying to streamline.  Been a complete clusterfuck and i was hired to uncluster.  We do in house leasing as well.\n\nVacancy is great. only 2 spaces that total about 3,500 sf that are empty and they are under construction as we speak.  Irritating capex  is either a the full elevator mod that will be a disaster or re-doing the entire front sidewalk.  Elevator companies are like the mob, i swear.  5 total buildings, 4 in San Francisco.\n\nWe'd love to get into MF, just haven't found the right opportunity.  Need some hand holding as we are 100% office.  We use Yardi.\n\nConsidering that this a single family office, the distributions go to my boss and I'm a salary.  Equity will come into play once we start looking at more assets and how the deal comes about.  Looking forward to those times.\n\nThe part that kills me is that the owner's brother is the building engineer and he is the common denominator for all of the aforementioned clusterfuckedness.  You have to deal with any of that type of BS?", "replies": [{"id": "cr85eus", "text": "I'm confused.  Are you the bosses son or otherwise some how part of the family?  ", "replies": [{"id": "cr88k1h", "text": "I'm an employee and not a family member at all.  Have to work with a family member though", "replies": [], "depth": 4}], "depth": 3}, {"id": "cr86amp", "text": "$250MM is a good place to be. Bay Area, given Prop M, is not ideal for development. \n\nManagement in house and leasing in house seems feasible given the demand in SF, but if supply ever catches up, in house leasing seems like it could be difficult. Big if. \n\nMF is fun. \n\nDon't have to deal with family issues, other than when approvals are needed. ", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cr895jb", "text": "I work at one of the big brokerage houses in SF. I'd be into talking shop. PM me ", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cr8l1hb", "text": "In terms of efficiency are you looking at ideas to streamline the business side, or the staff management/property management side?\n\nEither or, post some challenges, I am sure there are plenty that have dealt with them in the past and can provide insight. ", "replies": [{"id": "cr8lbx1", "text": "The first that comes to mind is implementing some software that serves as a customer service portal that generates a service internally.\n\nThe building engineer hates stucture and deadlines and according to him, he \"controls\" a lot of the service employees (in house painter, electrician, plumber, etc.).  The owner wants to implement the exact opposite.  \n\nHas anyone dealt with such a fundamental change and have suggestions on how best to withstand the shock of it?", "replies": [{"id": "cr9ewds", "text": "honestly sounds like if the owner is serious someone needs to have a heart to heart with the engineer and if he doesn't get it he needs to get out.  \n\nThe guys who can't seem like they are going to resist change usually don't last unless folks placate them, and then you never get anything achieved.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}]