But that has not happened, company CFO Charles Elliott tells Glbobest.com.
"We know there are some people who would love to move into this market, but the thing about Atlanta is that it's very hard to get zoning not only for apartments, but also at times for retail and other developments," he says.
A major reason is that residents are "tired of growth and congestion and traffic," Elliott says. But that has not deterred the company founded by Charles Roberts in 1970. The firm went public eight years ago.
Roberts has traditionally focused on Atlanta but in recent years has added Charlotte and Palm Beach to its target markets to anticipate any zoning-forced slowdowns.
Roberts has let Post Apartments concentrate on the luxury downtown market, while selecting the Atlanta suburbs as its main area of development.
"Post tends to have an urban strategy inside the I-285 perimeter," Elliott tells GlobeSt.com. "We tend to be along 285 or to the north of it," Elliott says, often in suburban locations that are 20 to 30 miles from the Downtown core area.
The company's latest project is a $23 million, 250-unit complex in North Atlanta under construction on a 10.7-acre tract.
When completed at the end of the year, the project is expected to increase the company's cash flow by about $570,000 a year. The leveraged yield is about 13%, Elliott says.
Roberts only builds and develops apartment units, finding that more profitable than owning them, the executive says.
The company's products target upscale white-collar professionals paying from $800 to $1300 a month rent.
Zoning problems notwithstanding, Roberts has other projects waiting to be developed and is seeking new zoning for other sites.
"We think Atlanta is a very good long-term investment," Elliott tells GlobeSt.com. "There's very good job growth and we've got some major regional malls and major employment centers."
In other first quarter financial results, Roberts' operating performance included higher revenues, NOI, occupancy and rent growth for stabilized properties compared to the same period last year, according to Elliott.
One secret to the company's success is its levels of customer service, a critical element in the luxury market, Elliott says. Average occupancy last year increased 4.2% to 97.7% from 93.5%.
Roberts, which offers upwards of a dozen floor plans in some projects, has a lease renewal rate of up to 60%. That's well above the industry average of 40 to 50%, Elliott says, and offers a strong affirmation of renter satisfaction.
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David Wilkening
David Wilkening began his long journalism career as a police reporter for Chicago-area newspapers. He became a writer-editor for major newspapers in Chicago, Washington, Detroit and Florida. He has been a business editor, political editor and travel editor for newspapers and magazines. He tried for a while to be a political operative but did better as an adjunct college professor teaching English and journalism. He is the author of several books, both ghost-written and under his own name. He is also a widely published freelance writer who currently lives in Orlando.
