ROCKVILLE, MD - First Advantage SafeRent, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of First Advantage Corporation and the nation's leading and most innovative provider of screening and risk management services for the multifamily industry, today announced the release of second quarter 2008 multifamily applicant risk statistics. The Multifamily Applicant Risk Index (MAR Index) is based on traffic quality scores from First Advantage SafeRent's statistical screening model and is updated quarterly to provide property owners and managers with a benchmark with which to compare their portfolio's performance. With this unique applicant risk index, property managers and owners are able to compare their applicant quality trends with that of the average MAR Index trends. This comparison indicates whether their portfolio is performing above, below or at market levels with respect to attracting and securing high quality, paying residents.
The second quarter national MAR Index, including studios, one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units (BR), was 105. This is a 5 percent increase from the first quarter 2008, which confirms a trend of seeing higher MAR Index values during the traditionally high applicant traffic volume periods of the second and third quarters. Compared to the second quarter 2007, the MAR Index is the same value of 105. When comparing applicants for one- versus two-bedroom units, the MAR Index is slightly lower for one-bedroom units at 105 compared to 106 for two-bedroom units in the second quarter.
Regionally, the Northeast continues to have the highest MAR Index with a value of 116 while the Midwest and South have the lowest MAR Index with a value of 102 this quarter.
From a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) perspective, the three MSAs with the leading decreases in the MAR Index were Memphis, TN-AR-MS; Phoenix/Mesa, AZ; and Denver/Boulder/Greeley, CO with decreases of 4, 5, and 6 points respectively. The three MSAs with the leading increases in the MAR Index were Chicago/Gary/Kenosha, IL-IN-WI; New York/Northern New Jersey/Long Island, NY-NJ-CT-PA; and Seattle/Tacoma/Bremerton, WA with increases of 3, 2 and 2 points respectively.
The MAR Index is published quarterly by First Advantage SafeRent. It provides trends of national and regional traffic quality scores whereby a lower index value indicates an applicant pool with a higher risk of not fulfilling lease obligations. A MAR Index value of 100 indicates that market conditions are equal to the national mean for the index's base period of 2004. A MAR Index value greater than 100 indicates market conditions with reduced average risk of default relative to the index's base period mean. A value less than 100 indicates market conditions with increased average risk of default relative to the index's base period mean.
The MAR Index is derived from First Advantage SafeRent's Statistical Screening Model - the multifamily industry's only screening model that is both empirically derived and statistically validated. First Advantage SafeRent's Statistical Screening Model was developed from historical resident lease performance data to specifically evaluate the potential risk of a resident's future lease performance. The model generates scores for each applicant indicating the relative risk of the applicant not fulfilling lease obligations. A lower score indicates a more risky applicant.
Source: eMediaWorld.com