ROCKVILLE, MD - First Advantage SafeRent, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of First Advantage Corporation (NASDAQ: FADV) 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 2009 multifamily applicant risk statistics.
The Multifamily Applicant Risk Index (MAR Index) is based on traffic credit quality scores from First Advantage SafeRent's statistical screening model and is updated quarterly to provide property owners and managers with a benchmark against which to compare their portfolio's performance. With this unique applicant risk index, property managers and owners are able to compare their applicant credit 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 applicants with higher credit quality and an increased likelihood of fulfilling their lease.
The second quarter national MAR Index, including studios, one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units (BR), was 106. This is a 6 point increase in overall national renter credit quality compared to the first quarter of 2009. This also confirms a trend of seeing higher MAR Index values during the traditionally high applicant traffic volume periods of the second and third quarters. The MAR Index is up 1 point from the second quarter 2008 value of 105, indicating a better applicant pool when compared to one year ago. When comparing applicants for one- versus two-bedroom units, the MAR Index is slightly higher for one-bedroom units at 107 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 and the South has the lowest MAR Index with a value of 102.
From a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) perspective, the three MSAs with the leading decreases in the MAR Index were Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC; Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI; and Portland-Salem, OR-WA with decreases of 4 points. The three MSAs with the leading increases in the MAR Index were Nashville, TN; Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC; and San Antonio, TX with increases of 3, 3, and 4 points, respectively.
The MAR Index is published quarterly by First Advantage SafeRent. It provides trends of national and regional traffic credit 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.
First Advantage SafeRent, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of First Advantage Corporation, is the nation's leading and most innovative provider of screening and risk management services to the multifamily housing industry. Through its offices in Rockville, Md., and support offices across the nation, First Advantage SafeRent offers a single source for resident screening services, renters insurance programs, automated lease and document generation and property performance evaluation tools. More than 39,000 properties, representing over 6 million apartment homes, rely on First Advantage SafeRent every day to assist them in screening residents to meet their community standards and maximize profitability. First Advantage SafeRent leads the industry in innovations and enhancements designed to make the decision process faster, easier and more accurate.
Source: First Advantage SafeRent