The Sundance Company – Page 8 – The Sundance Company

September 10, 2013July 16, 2013 sundancecompany commercial real estate, Commercial real estate news, The Sundance Company

The Evolving Face of Commercial Real Estate Technology

A recent article from Opinion of Value discussed some new commercial real estate technology showcased at the CRE Tech Intersect. CRE technology is an impossibly broad term that touches really every facet of a complex industry. Occupier services. Search. Data Exchange. Analytics– and more. The CRE Tech Intersect conference pulled these diverse items together in a setting that provided attendees with some great cutting-edge information, but still reminded everyone that personal interaction was still our industry’s most important tool.

COMPSTAK: Brokers have been using data on recent completed leases in the marketplace as currency forever. A lot of veteran brokers have regular meetings with colleagues from competing firms to trade lease comparables. We’ve been crowdsourcing comps for years, and pretty effectively at that.

CompStak CEO Michael Mandel says that they have close to 100% of lease data in New York, the first market in which they rolled out the service. Compstak’s comps are available to brokers essentially on a barter system– you give comps, you can get some. Again, not terribly different from how brokers operate amongst themselves already. Mandel sees a strong market for their data with institutional investors and major developers. CompStak’s aggregated data could supplement information that these entities now get for free from their broker.

This brings up a new take on a conversation that’s been going on in commercial real estate circles for a long time. Not the case everywhere, but it has been a very, very long time since information on something as mundane as available spaces has been considered proprietary. Brokers that base their business model on hoarding information at their desk are going to be forced to change. This applies to lease comparable data, too. Commercial real estate data is a commodity, and it’s getting cheaper and more readily available. Knowledge, information, and the ability to synthesize both into a real understanding of the market, though, has value. Smart brokers know this and welcome new players like CompStak.

LIQUIDSPACE: LiquidSpace is focused on booking immediate-need meeting space, short term conference rooms, etc., by taking advantage of an increasingly mobile workforce and the growth of co-working space. CEO Mark Gilbreath has an even bigger vision, though. From a real estate perspective, the biggest challenge facing start-ups is appropriately scaling a young high growth operation. What if these early stage players had an efficient method of ordering their office space à la carte instead of in bulk? Office space needs can be responded to real-time and based on immediate need. A more dynamic team with the flexibility to respond to the immediate needs of key employees. Bottom-up facility planning.

About The Sundance Company
Established in 1976, The Sundance Company has the experience to help you with your commercial real estate needs throughout the Boise Valley. If your requirements include property management, leasing, real estate development, project planning, construction or space planning then look to us. The Sundance Company has more than 1.5 million square feet of office and industrial space available in prime locations in the Boise metropolitan area. More information is available at www.sundanceco.com or 208.322.7300.

September 3, 2013July 16, 2013 sundancecompany business information, Commercial real estate news, office productivity, office space tips, The Sundance Company

How To Improve Customer Service

August 22, 2013June 25, 2013 sundancecompany Boise Commercial Real Estate, Boise Industrial Space, Boise Office Space, Boise Retail Space, Silverstone Corporate Center, The Sundance Company

Amber Point: Boise Valley Commercial Real Estate for Lease

Amber Point
1620 S. Topaz Way
Meridian, Idaho 83642

Amber Point – an approximately 8,200 square-foot Class A Meridian, Idaho structure – is part of the Silverstone Corporate Center, which is a 90-acre master planned employment center centrally located in the Boise Valley. Situated 1/2 mile from Interstate 84 at the Eagle Interchange, Silverstone Corporae Center features more than 1 million square feet of tenant amenities within minutes of the center including lodging, day care facilities, a fitness center, and a variety of restaurants. Silverstone also features a professional onsite business concierge available – www.silverstoneamenitycenter.com – to assist with all of your business planning and state-of-the-art meeting facilities designed to provide your business with everything you need to keep your company productive.

Amber Point has spaces starting at 1,300 square feet for lease with extensive perimeter and site landscaping, high visibility and access to Overland Road, consistent architecture throughout the park, minimum 5/1,000 parking ratio, and a generous $40/sf tenant improvement allowance on first generation space. Other highlights include:

Zoning: CC
Year Built: 2005
Number of Floors: One
Parking: 5/1,000 usable square feet
Ceiling: Lay-in acoustic ceiling panels in 2’x4’ T-bar ceiling grid with indirect and recessed lighting
Ceiling Height: 10 feet in office areas
Restrooms: Shared or private tenant restrooms throughout
Miscellaneous: All Sundance tenants have proportionate use of the Silverstone Amenity Center at no additional cost.

More information available about Amber Point at www.sundanceco.com or LoopNet.

About The Sundance Company

Established in 1976, The Sundance Company has the experience to help you with your commercial real estate needs throughout the Boise Valley. If your requirements include property management, leasing, real estate development, project planning, construction or space planning then look to us. The Sundance Company has more than 1.5 million square feet of office and industrial space available in prime locations in the Boise metropolitan area. More information is available at www.sundanceco.com or 208.322.7300.

August 15, 2013June 17, 2013 sundancecompany The Sundance Company

Is Real Estate Ready For Drones?

A CNN Money article discusses how dozens of companies have sprung up in the last few years making remote controlled, mini-aircraft mounted with cameras, that are increasingly being used for commercial and even entertainment purposes. But these aren’t the remote controlled helicopters you remember flying as a kid. Today’s drones are lighter, have better software, longer lasting batteries and vastly improved camera technology.

On the higher end of the cost spectrum are drones with high definition cameras that can operate a mile or more from the person flying it. They can cost tens of thousand of dollars, and are aimed at a variety of commercial uses.

Law enforcement agencies and border patrol are using them to keep tabs on suspected scofflaws. Journalists and sports photographers use them in lieu of expensive helicopters. Real estate agents employ them for aerial photos and video. Wildlife researchers and search-and-rescue outfits are using them or studying the potential. Even the utility industry is interested in having them hunt for downed power lines after a storm.

One of the most promising uses might be in agriculture, said Chris Anderson, former editor of Wired magazine who now runs the drone maker 3D Robotics.

3D Robotics makes a $500 drone that flies itself via GPS, scouring fields for information on crop conditions including water levels, pest infestations and other signs of trouble. Currently, Anderson said farmers pay $1,000 an hour for aircraft flyovers, a cost that’s prohibitively expensive.

“Farmers have no idea what’s going on in the fields,” said Anderson. “It can lead to over irrigation, over pesticide use, all sorts of problems.”

There is also a growing market for smaller, simpler drones marketed to kids and adults for recreational use. For example, the Parrot AR Drone, has a range of about 160 feet, is controlled by a smart phone app, and can be bought at Toys R Us for $300. It’s aimed at teens and adults that want an enhanced video game experience. Parrot said sales have already exceeded 500,000.

But the spread of the new technology is also raising a host of new issues.

While the American Civil Liberties Union is still finalizing its position on drones, the group has some reservations about how the technology could infringe on citizens’ rights.

“The technology of surveillance is becoming retail, and that will pose real challenges to our traditional notion of privacy,” said Catherine Crump, an ACLU attorney.

With ever-shrinking size and ever better camera technology, the group is concerned that people acting under the assumption that they’re in the privacy of their own homes or yards could be wrong.

While stalking laws or other measures would likely prevent someone from hovering a drone outside your bedroom window, “the airspace is something that anyone can fly through,” Crump said. “It’s not clear that there’s anything restricting someone from flying a drone over the property of others.

The Federal Aviation Administration was instructed by Congress in 2012 to open up the nation’s airspace to routine commercial drone use and is in charge of issuing permits for drones that operate at 400 feet or higher. Since 2009, the number of permits has more than doubled, going from 146 to 345 in 2012.

While the agency is still working up the rules, it has issued a fact sheet with current guidelines.

The FAA says drones that operate below 400 feet are subject to the same rules that govern model aircraft. Those essentially say the drones cannot be flown near populated areas, must stay within eyesight of the user, and cannot be used for commercial purposes, at least until the rules are finalized.

With real estate agents and journalists using drones, it appears those rules are being put to the test. An FAA spokesman said the agency “has investigated operations that appear to be commercial in nature.”

But industry advocates say it’s not just the government that should have access to this technology. Civilian drones represent a chance for citizens to monitor authority, as Occupy Wall Street protesters reportedly did last year with their drone dubbed “The Occucopter.”

“Laws to protect privacy would have to be drafted to protect people’s right to take photographs,” Crump said.

August 8, 2013June 17, 2013 sundancecompany business information, office productivity, office space tips, The Sundance Company

Why Should You Sit Up Straight?

For people who spend the day staring at a computer screen, slouching is fairly typical. But what is it doing to your spine, if anything? An article from the Wall Street Journal discusses if we need to sit up straight.

Stop for a second and notice the way you are sitting. Back curved, shoulders slumped, maybe legs crossed? For people who spend the day staring at a computer screen, this position is fairly typical. But what is it doing to your spine, if anything? Do we need to sit up straight to focus, like that mean math teacher once insisted? Here’s some straight talk from one expert, Mladen Golubic, medical director for the Center for Lifestyle Medicine at Cleveland Clinic’s Wellness Institute.

Degrees of Comfort
Little research has been done on the best way to sit upright. One American meta study in 1999 concluded that sitting at an angle of 110 to 130 degrees was optimal for spine comfort. A Scottish study published in 2007 found that leaning back at 135 degrees is ideal to prevent back strain. While interesting, this sort of precision may be impractical for most people, Dr. Golubic says.

Sitting to Death?
His clinic sees patients with multiple chronic illnesses. Nearly all of them sit for long periods each day. The term Sedentary Death Syndrome was coined by the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports in 2002 to address the growing consequences of a seated lifestyle. “There are studies on Sedentary Death Syndrome that show that sitting for hours can cause anything from lower back pain to high cholesterol, diabetes and obesity,” he says. In other words, no matter what position you’re sitting in all day, it is pretty bad for you.

The Perfect Pose
Body posture determines the efficiency of your breathing. “Relaxed, straight sitting”—with the core strong, shoulder blades active but not tight and spine erect—”expands your chest, allowing you to take in a larger breath…and you’ll have more energy and focus,” Dr. Golubic says. To achieve this, sit away from the back of your chair so you don’t slump, with your feet placed firmly on the ground. He sometimes sends patients home with a blue dot to put on their computer screens as a reminder to sit up straight and stretch and take a deep breath when they feel pain. There is also an app called PostureTrack that alerts users when they’re slumping.

Slump to a Hump
It’s not as though slouching will give you a hunchback in a day, but “if you do this day after day, and your muscles are not strong, the whole skeleton changes,” Dr. Golubic says. “I’m not aware of any studies that look at the changes in the volume of organs like the liver and spleen when you sit straight or slump forward. But we do know that when you slouch, you project an attitude of depression and low motivation.” When you sit up straight, he adds, “psychologically, your attitude is better.”

Core Message
If you’re not used to sitting up straight, you may feel lower back pain—an indicator that you need to strengthen your core and work on general fitness. Dr. Golubic almost always advises his patients to start yoga: “The first thing we learn in yoga is how to sit properly.”

Walk, Don’t Sit
The bottom line: How you sit is less important than how long you sit, Dr. Golubic says. He tries to get up from his desk often, doing “walking meetings” with colleagues and taking phone calls outdoors. “If you cannot walk,” he says, “At least stand.”

About The Sundance Company
Established in 1976, The Sundance Company has the experience to help you with your commercial real estate needs in throughout the Boise Valley. If your requirements include property management, leasing, real estate development, project planning, construction or space planning then look to us. The Sundance Company has more than 1.5 million square feet of office and industrial space available in prime locations in the Boise metropolitan area. More information is available at www.sundanceco.com or 208.322.7300.

August 1, 2013May 20, 2013 sundancecompany business information, The Sundance Company

How Blogs Increase Sales

July 23, 2013July 16, 2013 sundancecompany commercial real estate, Commercial real estate news, The Sundance Company

BOMA Survey: Office Tenants Optimistic About Future Staffing, Space Needs

A recent article from the CoStar Group shared the results of the first survey of tenant sentiments and needs by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International since 1999. Despite the recession and changing workplace trends, the walls aren’t closing in on office space requirements just yet, according BOMA.

BOMA found that, as a group, office tenants are optimistic about the future — more than 75% of respondents in the 2013 BOMA Global Office Tenant Survey plan to increase staffing levels and space requirements, or at least retain their current employee headcounts and office footprints.

“Clearly, tenant space configurations are different – they need to be friendly and collaborative, with such features such as a work bench, a fun room or multimedia room – but the need for more office space is not going away,” noted John Combs, principal of RiverRock Real Estate Group, a West Coast-based CRE management and leasing firm providing property management for industrial, office and retail assets.

“[Requirements] can’t shrink too much more,” added Combs. “Those companies that are leasing are taking the same or more space. It’s reconfigured and it’s denser, but many people are hiring.”

Atlanta-based Kingsley Associates conducted the survey of nearly 1,300 office tenants between March and April, revisiting attitudes, priorities and needs of office tenants for the first time since a January 1999 report by BOMA and the Urban Land Institute (ULI).

Kingsley vice president Phil Mobley gave an overview of the “What Office Tenants Want: 2013 BOMA Global Office Tenant Survey” at this week’s Every Building Conference and Expo before several thousand attendees at the San Diego Convention Center.

Michael Prabhu, managing director Jones Lang LaSalle’s property management portfolio in Southern California, Arizona and Nevada, also noted that the outlook among building owners was positive, with improving economic conditions and fundamentals trending in their assets trickling down to the property management level and interactions with tenants.

“We feel the corner has been turned and the economy is moving along, albeit slowly, but in the right direction,” Prabhu said. “Tenants in our buildings are feeling more comfortable and confident, which is driving some of their space utilization decision making. It’s a more optimistic environment.”

As expected, the survey results reflect the major changes in office tenant priorities since then.

In 1999, barely half of respondents to the previous BOMA survey were located in assets with “intelligent building” features and systems almost taken for granted today such as HVAC, fiber optics, cabling for Internet and high-speed networks, and LAN/WAN connectivity, and strategies such as coworking, hot desking and hoteling were mostly outside the office workplace mainstream a decade and a half ago.

While the updated survey found no universal “next big thing” comparable to the rapid changes in technology and alternative workplace strategies that swept building management in the 2000s, Mobley said the latest study showed that three of the top five factors influencing overall tenant satisfaction are service-related.

One relatively easy way to add value to a building is the addition of health and hygiene amenities such as anti-bacterial dispensers.

“Such amenities are comparatively rare in buildings occupied by survey respondents, but they are rated highly when present,” Mobley said.

The full results of the BOMA study will be released next month, including data on tenant attitudes about sustainable building programs and features space usage and telecommuting trends.

About The Sundance Company

July 17, 2013May 20, 2013 sundancecompany The Sundance Company

How Corporate Logos Have Evolved

July 10, 2013May 13, 2013 sundancecompany The Sundance Company

Daily Habits That Will Make You Happier

An article from Inc.com discusses how minor changes in your daily routine can make a major difference in your life an career.

Happiness is the only true measure of personal success. Making other people happy is the highest expression of success, but it’s almost impossible to make others happy if you’re not happy yourself. With that in mind, here are nine small changes that you can make to your daily routine that, if you’re like most people, will immediately increase the amount of happiness in your life:

1. Start each day with expectation. If there’s any big truth about life, it’s that it usually lives up to (or down to) your expectations. Therefore, when you rise from bed, make your first thought: “something wonderful is going to happen today.” Guess what? You’re probably right.

2. Take time to plan and prioritize. The most common source of stress is the perception that you’ve got too much work to do. Rather than obsess about it, pick one thing that, if you get it done today, will move you closer to your highest goal and purpose in life. Then do that first.

3. Give a gift to everyone you meet. I’m not talking about a formal, wrapped-up present. Your gift can be your smile, a word of thanks or encouragement, a gesture of politeness, even a friendly nod. And never pass beggars without leaving them something. Peace of mind is worth the spare change.

4. Deflect partisan conversations. Arguments about politics and religion never have a “right” answer but they definitely get people all riled up over things they can’t control. When such topics surface, bow out by saying something like: “Thinking about that stuff makes my head hurt.”

5. Assume people have good intentions. Since you can’t read minds, you don’t really know the “why” behind the “what” that people do. Imputing evil motives to other people’s weird behaviors adds extra misery to life, while assuming good intentions leaves you open to reconciliation.

6. Eat high quality food slowly. Sometimes we can’t avoid scarfing something quick to keep us up and running. Even so, at least once a day try to eat something really delicious, like a small chunk of fine cheese or an imported chocolate. Focus on it; taste it; savor it.

7. Let go of your results. The big enemy of happiness is worry, which comes from focusing on events that are outside your control. Once you’ve taken action, there’s usually nothing more you can do. Focus on the job at hand rather than some weird fantasy of what might happen.

8. Turn off “background” TV. Many households leave their TVs on as “background noise” while they’re doing other things. The entire point of broadcast TV is to make you dissatisfied with your life so that you’ll buy more stuff. Why subliminally program yourself to be a mindless consumer?

9. End each day with gratitude. Just before you go to bed, write down at least one wonderful thing that happened. It might be something as small as a making a child laugh or something as huge as a million dollar deal. Whatever it is, be grateful for that day because it will never come again.

July 2, 2013June 17, 2013 sundancecompany The Sundance Company

Category: The Sundance Company