Dear NWJ Employees-
I hope that this blog finds you all well.
I am writing because if any of you have had any ideas for our company or any questions that you have wanted to ask me personally, but have not had the the opportunity to the time has come.
All of the employees here at NWJ are a valued part of our company and if it were not for your hard work and dedication to NWJ we would not be where we are today. It is because of this incredible commitment that I want to know what ideas or questions you may have to better further not only our product, but continue to make you happy here at NWJ.
Please email me directly at jekogian@nwjcompanies.com and I will personally reply to all emails within 48hours. I look forward to reading the emails.
Have a wonderful day.
Very Truly Yours,
Nick
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
See the world through the eyes of a child
I was just on a trip to Disney World with my kids and a large group of executives and their families. On arrival everyone was given a wrist band to wear the entire weekend. It said " See the world through the eyes of a child.". Wearing this band was very helpful to me and many of the other executives who normally can't go 10 minutes without checking blackberries or cell phones.
What I saw over the few days was that in normal life we are so wrapped up in our point of view that we don't pay attention to how things look from the customers eyes. When we answer no to a request or tell a seller that we can't pay another dollar for the property how are they seeing that message? We need to think about those things before we can truly please our customers or create a win-win situation for our sellers.
The other thing I learned from wearing the band and "seeing the world through the eyes of a child" was that its a big world with lots of options and the possibilities are endless. Walt Disney said it himself --
"If you can dream it, you can make it so." - Walt Disney
We are doing that here at NWJ/Signature. We are creating one of the largest customer service driven housing lifestyle brands in the world. With your efforts, ideas and dreams we will reach that goal.
Thanks for all your hard work and remember its up to you to make it happen.
Nickolas W Jekogian
What I saw over the few days was that in normal life we are so wrapped up in our point of view that we don't pay attention to how things look from the customers eyes. When we answer no to a request or tell a seller that we can't pay another dollar for the property how are they seeing that message? We need to think about those things before we can truly please our customers or create a win-win situation for our sellers.
The other thing I learned from wearing the band and "seeing the world through the eyes of a child" was that its a big world with lots of options and the possibilities are endless. Walt Disney said it himself --
"If you can dream it, you can make it so." - Walt Disney
We are doing that here at NWJ/Signature. We are creating one of the largest customer service driven housing lifestyle brands in the world. With your efforts, ideas and dreams we will reach that goal.
Thanks for all your hard work and remember its up to you to make it happen.
Nickolas W Jekogian
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
SUCCESS
Most of this week’s blog is taken from another blog that I subscribe to. I thought it was something you could use so here it is:
The definition of success: There are many; let's see how this one works for you: "Believing you will use your physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional abilities to their fullest in order to achieve a goal".
Definitions of success must include the word - "believe". Believe in yourself, believe you can succeed, more over, believe you "will" succeed. Those who do not achieve their goal(s) often didn't really believe they could in the first place. "You can lose your momentum but don't ever lose your confidence".
A lame excuse, blaming other people or circumstances when a set back occurs is without merit. I call an unsuccessful attempt a “setback" not a "failure". The word failure sounds so - well, final - like you'll never get another chance. Treating an unsuccessful attempt as a setback implies it is just a "speed bump" in the road. "When one door closes another opens" is a mantra worth remembering, only IF you believe that there will be other doors. So you lost the game or the league titles, or even the Super Bowl, treat it as a setback - not a failure. When you are using all of your talents to achieve your goal(s), then your efforts are a success.
Jack Canfield, co-creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul, in his has a new book called The Success Principles has the most complete descriptions of success I have found. I'll make no attempt to summarize its 473 pages; however, suffice it to say, the book's underlying principle is to increase self-confidence.
How do you build self-confidence? I say "build" not “create" because self-confidence is already there - inside you. There are many ways to do that. One is that success begets success. In other words, as you succeed, you build self-confidence toward your next adventure. It works. Should success not happen, prepare for the alternative. It's there, just look for it. Another method is affirmations. Talk to yourself about the goodness in you. Promote your sense of self-esteem through positive statements about your abilities. Real success is achieved with patience, persistence and, of course, believing you will. Never doubt that for a minute.
Will you treat every opportunity as one that will be successful?
Remember, our success is all dependent on you. Thanks for Making It Happen.
Nickolas W Jekogian
The definition of success: There are many; let's see how this one works for you: "Believing you will use your physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional abilities to their fullest in order to achieve a goal".
Definitions of success must include the word - "believe". Believe in yourself, believe you can succeed, more over, believe you "will" succeed. Those who do not achieve their goal(s) often didn't really believe they could in the first place. "You can lose your momentum but don't ever lose your confidence".
A lame excuse, blaming other people or circumstances when a set back occurs is without merit. I call an unsuccessful attempt a “setback" not a "failure". The word failure sounds so - well, final - like you'll never get another chance. Treating an unsuccessful attempt as a setback implies it is just a "speed bump" in the road. "When one door closes another opens" is a mantra worth remembering, only IF you believe that there will be other doors. So you lost the game or the league titles, or even the Super Bowl, treat it as a setback - not a failure. When you are using all of your talents to achieve your goal(s), then your efforts are a success.
Jack Canfield, co-creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul, in his has a new book called The Success Principles has the most complete descriptions of success I have found. I'll make no attempt to summarize its 473 pages; however, suffice it to say, the book's underlying principle is to increase self-confidence.
How do you build self-confidence? I say "build" not “create" because self-confidence is already there - inside you. There are many ways to do that. One is that success begets success. In other words, as you succeed, you build self-confidence toward your next adventure. It works. Should success not happen, prepare for the alternative. It's there, just look for it. Another method is affirmations. Talk to yourself about the goodness in you. Promote your sense of self-esteem through positive statements about your abilities. Real success is achieved with patience, persistence and, of course, believing you will. Never doubt that for a minute.
Will you treat every opportunity as one that will be successful?
Remember, our success is all dependent on you. Thanks for Making It Happen.
Nickolas W Jekogian
Monday, May 5, 2008
Everything is Connected
A fire starts in D.C. and a loan goes into default in Texas? Welcome to the flat world. The same technology that enables us to buy and manage buildings all over the country (soon the world) also gives transparency to our residents, lenders, vendors, partners and investors. So when something negative happens to us in any of our 20 markets it has long range effects throughout the country.
Obviously fires and other catastrophes can't be stopped but what about your comments to a resident or a vendor or a seller? With the power of the internet you should assume that every comment you make your day is going to be plastered on YouTube.
Now let's think of that in a positive way. Every time you solve a problem for a resident, made a seller happy, repaid a lender early or substantially increased returns to investors we are increasing our credibility. They will tell others. Maybe they won't post it on YouTube but others will hear.
So think about that today when you have the chance to under promise and over perform. Exceeding expectations will be talked about.
Below is the letter I sent to our investors explaining the situation we have in Washington D.C. You will see that even when you haven't done anything wrong it is perception that matters and can hurt your reputation just as quickly as actually doing the wrong thing. Please take the time to read the letter below so you know the real story.
Thank you,
Nick
Ladies and Gentleman:
I am writing this letter to you to address a recent article that appeared in The Washington Post concerning NWJ Companies and myself. The article, which discussed a fire that swept though one of our properties in Washington D.C., has raised some concerns. I strongly believe the article was inaccurate and politically motivated to editorialize about the city’s lack of real affordable housing, while using our property as a stimulus for action. The reporter clearly did not perform investigative research as she claimed, before writing the opinionated article.
Just to provide you with the background, approximately three weeks ago, a fire destroyed our 100-unit building in the middle of the night, causing an evacuation of all residents and inviting the scrutiny of the city officials and the media. There were no major injuries and more importantly, no loss of life. The fire department’s investigation is ongoing and it has yet to determine the fire’s root cause. However, at the press conference immediately following the fire, the department credited our fire alarm system with working “perfectly”. Due to our brand new fire-alarm system, new fire-rated doors, smoke alarms and emergency egress systems, all residents were able to safely evacuate the building.
First and foremost, I would like to address what I believe to be the article’s most egregious allegations. When we took over the property and during the renovation process there may very well have been thousands of building violations against the property. These problems, which we inherited with our acquisition of the property, accumulated over many years prior to NWJ assuming ownership. Let me be absolutely clear - all violations had been removed over the course of our renovations and there were zero outstanding violations against the property at the time of the fire. In fact, the building passed its last fire safety inspection and had been violation-free for the past 15 months. This is not just our claim, but was clearly articulated by the head of the city’s building inspection department in the days following the fire.
Over the past three years, NWJ Companies had embarked on a $2 million capital improvement campaign for this property. Improvements included a new elevator, new historically-certified windows, a complete renovation of the common areas, renovations to 60 of the 100 units, the installation of new boilers, a brand new roof, a new security system, a controlled access door system and most importantly, a brand new state-of-the-art fire-alarm system for the building.
Every unit in the building had functioning smoke detectors and fire-rated steel doors were placed on every floor. The doors delayed the fire’s advance, allowing for the complete evacuation of all residents on the night of the incident. Additionally, there were working fire extinguishers throughout the building in accordance with housing guidelines and the extinguishers were completely up-to-date and operating on the night of the fire.
One of the other allegations centered around violations involving pest and rodent violations for the building. Once again, I must state that these are just false statements. Besides having no other violations of any kind against the property, we have a standing pest control maintenance contract that calls for weekly work at all of our buildings to ensure abatement issues are addressed on an ongoing basis. Additionally, we have various maintenance contracts in full force and the remedial treatments they provide have gone uninterrupted.
A major concern with the impression portrayed in this article is that NWJ Companies was trying to convert this building into condominiums, and then displace the residents. As you know, the entire NWJ Companies model is built on purchasing undervalued and distressed properties to invest in and raise income as we improve the building. This building in particular was nearly fully occupied and we had an active leasing campaign to rent apartments as they became vacant. We are not condominium converters in this particular market, nor in any other.
These undervalued and underappreciated buildings are exactly the type of projects we actively seek as part of our business paradigm. We invest in these buildings for the long-term growth we believe we will obtain by making wise capital expenditures.
To renovate these properties properly, we need to expend fairly sizable amounts of money to repair conditions that had existed long before we purchased them. However, this is where we see opportunities to transform a building and a neighborhood and, to be honest, make a profit. The fact that residents might not want to support a capital expenditure campaign, which will lead to higher rents, is nothing new. It is a question that has plagued urban areas for as long as there has been housing.
There are usually two sides to every story, yet I stand firmly behind this one simple fact: If not for the fact that NWJ Companies invested capital to make improvements at The Deauville, with substantial sums being allocated to safety issues, this horrific fire would have resulted in the loss of much more than material possessions. We do our job well, and we did it well at this property..
As part of the maelstorm that was created by the politicians, community activists, and tenants as a result of this fire, Washington, D.C. authorities filed a lawsuit to place many, many buildings, including The Deauville and two other properties we own, in receivership for various alleged violations and conditions at the various properties. As you can imagine we were outraged by this lawsuit and allegations contained therein. These other properties were maintained just like we did The Deauville, having been the recipients of numerous capital improvements over the last several years. What made this lawsuit even more outrageous was the fact that all our properties were all violation free, well before this lawsuit was commenced.
Seeking the best was to address these specious and slanderous claims, we engaged legal counsel to answer the lawsuit and have any property owned by NWJ Companies dismissed from the lawsuit. (Attached please find a copy of a letter our counsel sent to the attorney for Washington, D.C.) As a result of our answer to the lawsuit, and certainly to some extent the evidence we supplied the authorities of our compliance with city regulations, an Order, dated April 23, 2008 was issued (a copy of which I have attached), dismissing the city’s lawsuit on several grounds, including most importantly, the fact that the city failed to adequately submit, “specific points and authorities to support the motion.”
Although we would all like to believe that this should put an end to the publicity and false allegations that have resulted from the fire, but I must be realistic and tell you it probably will not. The fact of the matter is that low income housing issues in inner city areas have always been and will continue to ripe for political showmanship and posturing and is just part of the business model of investing in these communities. But I do firmly believe, after consultation with our attorneys, that the lawsuit seeking receivership for 3 of our properties will not be re-instituted.
However, by “staying realistic”, I know we control a fairly “key” development site right in the heart of D.C., and there will be political pressure to ensure that affordable housing is being re-built on the site. To this end, we are planning on meeting with the Mayor’s office and community leaders to see if we can navigate this landscape as expeditiously and economically favorably as possible.
I would welcome the opportunity to discuss any questions you might have about the fire or any of the other policies and procedures we follow at NWJ Companies. Accordingly, if you would like, please give me a call at (917) 763-3500 at a time of your convenience.
Very truly yours,
Nickolas W. Jekogian, III,
President
Obviously fires and other catastrophes can't be stopped but what about your comments to a resident or a vendor or a seller? With the power of the internet you should assume that every comment you make your day is going to be plastered on YouTube.
Now let's think of that in a positive way. Every time you solve a problem for a resident, made a seller happy, repaid a lender early or substantially increased returns to investors we are increasing our credibility. They will tell others. Maybe they won't post it on YouTube but others will hear.
So think about that today when you have the chance to under promise and over perform. Exceeding expectations will be talked about.
Below is the letter I sent to our investors explaining the situation we have in Washington D.C. You will see that even when you haven't done anything wrong it is perception that matters and can hurt your reputation just as quickly as actually doing the wrong thing. Please take the time to read the letter below so you know the real story.
Thank you,
Nick
Ladies and Gentleman:
I am writing this letter to you to address a recent article that appeared in The Washington Post concerning NWJ Companies and myself. The article, which discussed a fire that swept though one of our properties in Washington D.C., has raised some concerns. I strongly believe the article was inaccurate and politically motivated to editorialize about the city’s lack of real affordable housing, while using our property as a stimulus for action. The reporter clearly did not perform investigative research as she claimed, before writing the opinionated article.
Just to provide you with the background, approximately three weeks ago, a fire destroyed our 100-unit building in the middle of the night, causing an evacuation of all residents and inviting the scrutiny of the city officials and the media. There were no major injuries and more importantly, no loss of life. The fire department’s investigation is ongoing and it has yet to determine the fire’s root cause. However, at the press conference immediately following the fire, the department credited our fire alarm system with working “perfectly”. Due to our brand new fire-alarm system, new fire-rated doors, smoke alarms and emergency egress systems, all residents were able to safely evacuate the building.
First and foremost, I would like to address what I believe to be the article’s most egregious allegations. When we took over the property and during the renovation process there may very well have been thousands of building violations against the property. These problems, which we inherited with our acquisition of the property, accumulated over many years prior to NWJ assuming ownership. Let me be absolutely clear - all violations had been removed over the course of our renovations and there were zero outstanding violations against the property at the time of the fire. In fact, the building passed its last fire safety inspection and had been violation-free for the past 15 months. This is not just our claim, but was clearly articulated by the head of the city’s building inspection department in the days following the fire.
Over the past three years, NWJ Companies had embarked on a $2 million capital improvement campaign for this property. Improvements included a new elevator, new historically-certified windows, a complete renovation of the common areas, renovations to 60 of the 100 units, the installation of new boilers, a brand new roof, a new security system, a controlled access door system and most importantly, a brand new state-of-the-art fire-alarm system for the building.
Every unit in the building had functioning smoke detectors and fire-rated steel doors were placed on every floor. The doors delayed the fire’s advance, allowing for the complete evacuation of all residents on the night of the incident. Additionally, there were working fire extinguishers throughout the building in accordance with housing guidelines and the extinguishers were completely up-to-date and operating on the night of the fire.
One of the other allegations centered around violations involving pest and rodent violations for the building. Once again, I must state that these are just false statements. Besides having no other violations of any kind against the property, we have a standing pest control maintenance contract that calls for weekly work at all of our buildings to ensure abatement issues are addressed on an ongoing basis. Additionally, we have various maintenance contracts in full force and the remedial treatments they provide have gone uninterrupted.
A major concern with the impression portrayed in this article is that NWJ Companies was trying to convert this building into condominiums, and then displace the residents. As you know, the entire NWJ Companies model is built on purchasing undervalued and distressed properties to invest in and raise income as we improve the building. This building in particular was nearly fully occupied and we had an active leasing campaign to rent apartments as they became vacant. We are not condominium converters in this particular market, nor in any other.
These undervalued and underappreciated buildings are exactly the type of projects we actively seek as part of our business paradigm. We invest in these buildings for the long-term growth we believe we will obtain by making wise capital expenditures.
To renovate these properties properly, we need to expend fairly sizable amounts of money to repair conditions that had existed long before we purchased them. However, this is where we see opportunities to transform a building and a neighborhood and, to be honest, make a profit. The fact that residents might not want to support a capital expenditure campaign, which will lead to higher rents, is nothing new. It is a question that has plagued urban areas for as long as there has been housing.
There are usually two sides to every story, yet I stand firmly behind this one simple fact: If not for the fact that NWJ Companies invested capital to make improvements at The Deauville, with substantial sums being allocated to safety issues, this horrific fire would have resulted in the loss of much more than material possessions. We do our job well, and we did it well at this property..
As part of the maelstorm that was created by the politicians, community activists, and tenants as a result of this fire, Washington, D.C. authorities filed a lawsuit to place many, many buildings, including The Deauville and two other properties we own, in receivership for various alleged violations and conditions at the various properties. As you can imagine we were outraged by this lawsuit and allegations contained therein. These other properties were maintained just like we did The Deauville, having been the recipients of numerous capital improvements over the last several years. What made this lawsuit even more outrageous was the fact that all our properties were all violation free, well before this lawsuit was commenced.
Seeking the best was to address these specious and slanderous claims, we engaged legal counsel to answer the lawsuit and have any property owned by NWJ Companies dismissed from the lawsuit. (Attached please find a copy of a letter our counsel sent to the attorney for Washington, D.C.) As a result of our answer to the lawsuit, and certainly to some extent the evidence we supplied the authorities of our compliance with city regulations, an Order, dated April 23, 2008 was issued (a copy of which I have attached), dismissing the city’s lawsuit on several grounds, including most importantly, the fact that the city failed to adequately submit, “specific points and authorities to support the motion.”
Although we would all like to believe that this should put an end to the publicity and false allegations that have resulted from the fire, but I must be realistic and tell you it probably will not. The fact of the matter is that low income housing issues in inner city areas have always been and will continue to ripe for political showmanship and posturing and is just part of the business model of investing in these communities. But I do firmly believe, after consultation with our attorneys, that the lawsuit seeking receivership for 3 of our properties will not be re-instituted.
However, by “staying realistic”, I know we control a fairly “key” development site right in the heart of D.C., and there will be political pressure to ensure that affordable housing is being re-built on the site. To this end, we are planning on meeting with the Mayor’s office and community leaders to see if we can navigate this landscape as expeditiously and economically favorably as possible.
I would welcome the opportunity to discuss any questions you might have about the fire or any of the other policies and procedures we follow at NWJ Companies. Accordingly, if you would like, please give me a call at (917) 763-3500 at a time of your convenience.
Very truly yours,
Nickolas W. Jekogian, III,
President
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