Riverside was selected as the Intelligent Community of 2012, besting 400 cities around the world in an annual competition to pick the city with the best practices involving infrastructure for the digital age.
It was the first time in the history of the Intelligent Community Forum in which an American city has been picked by the New York-based think-tank for its multisector approach to channel high-tech growth into a community.
How will this smart-designation bode for the real estate market in Riverside?
“I most definitely would use that as a selling point,” said Gabriella Hanson, a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty in Riverside. “It’s a city I’d want to live in.”
The city’s fiber network, connecting its operations to University Research Park, a free WiFi network through 1,600 access points, College 311, and a computer and software program for families got high marks from the forum, which set up the competition to give communities incentives to close the digital divide.
“It helps us, as real estate professionals, to market the city,” said Doug Shepherd, immediate past president of the Inland Valleys Association of Realtors and owner of Shepherd Realty Group in Riverside. “We compete against surrounding communities, and we want to put forth Riverside for what it is, a premiere city in the region.”
“The website, universities and SmartRiverside help us, as a business, connect with the customer,” Shepherd said. “It helps sell the city as a place to be.”
New Management Team for Springboard Subsidiary
Springboard Nonprofit Consumer Credit Management, a Riverside-based financial counseling agency, last week announced a new subsidiary, Springboard Housing, to acquire, own and manage rental properties.
Springboard Housing set up a $25 million investment vehicle to acquire the multifamily housing properties in five states, as a move aimed at preparing for a predicted shortage in rental property by a growing number of people who have lost their homes to short-sale or foreclosure.
On Tuesday, Springboard added another layer to the rental housing template.
It announced the creation of Springboard Management, to operate a range of residential and social service needs for tenants of the communities.
Springboard tapped Chris Stevens as president and Lyle Lansdell as executive vice president.
Stocks Rise for
Positive first-quarter profit reports by the struggling new home market industry helped boost trading activity on Wall Street last week.
Kicking off some of the positive gains was K. Hovnanian, which reported its strongest April home sales month per community that the company has seen since 2006, outside of the September 2007 Deal of the Century event.
Homebuilding stocks jumped mid-week and stayed in positive country as of Friday and Monday. But pundits warn against a rush to judgment that the industry is out of the woods.
Analysts are keeping an eye on the latest consumer confidence reports, the fate of Spanish banks and a new report that West Coast residents have been noting since the recession began: Income levels are lower than they were one year ago.
Reach Debra Gruszecki at dgruszecki@pe.com or 951-368-9425
Debra Gruszecki
Residential Real Estate
Source: http://www.pe.com/business/business-columns/commercial-real-estate-headlines/20120612-real-estate-smart-riverside-smart-home-sales.ece
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