07/16/2026 - Increasing NOI & Asset Value Through Operational Efficiency

This Legacy Boardroom Master Class features Matt Carlin, COO of Legacy Wealth Holdings, breaking down how commercial real estate operators can increase NOI and asset value without acquiring another property. The session focuses on finding hidden revenue leaks, controlling operating expenses, improving property management discipline, and implementing a practical 90-day NOI optimization plan.

What This Call Covers

• Finding “Lazy NOI”
  • Identify income already available within the existing portfolio but lost through operational inefficiencies
  • Review detailed P&Ls, rent rolls, delinquency reports, bank activity, and market comps monthly
  • Ask: Where is revenue leaking? Where are expenses too high? Where are processes undisciplined?
• Reducing Vacancy & Loss to Lease
  • Track loss to lease, not just occupancy
  • Review market rents quarterly and develop a lease trade-out strategy
  • Monitor days-to-lease and vacancy trends weekly
  • Recognize that below-market rents can cost more than vacancy itself
• Controlling Concessions
  • Avoid using free rent and concessions as the default solution for leasing challenges
  • Require leadership approval for concessions
  • Determine whether concessions are masking pricing, leasing, or operational problems
• Cutting Controllable Expenses
  • Focus on payroll, repairs & maintenance, contract services, utilities, and marketing/admin
  • Benchmark expenses on a per-unit basis across properties
  • Rebid vendor contracts annually to prevent unnecessary cost increases
  • Use preventative maintenance to reduce recurring repair expenses
• Using the NOI Multiplier
  • Small operational improvements can create significant increases in property value
  • At a 6% cap rate, every $100K of additional NOI can add roughly $1.6M in asset value
  • Improving vacancy, loss to lease, and R&M in the example discussed could generate approximately $285K in annual NOI and nearly $5M in additional value
• Implementing a 90-Day NOI Plan
  • Review loss to lease weekly
  • Personally approve concessions
  • Benchmark payroll, R&M, and vendor expenses
  • Audit utility payments monthly
  • Track unit-turn costs by property and bedroom type
  • Establish weekly KPIs instead of waiting for monthly financial reports to reveal problems
• Improving Acquisition Due Diligence
  • Independently verify market rents rather than relying solely on broker OMs
  • Understand how inherited concessions affect effective rent
  • Analyze high expense ratios for deferred maintenance or operational inefficiencies
  • Use unusually high operating expenses as a potential negotiation lever during acquisition
• Key Takeaway
  • Investors don't always need another acquisition to create significant value. Tighter control of rents, vacancy, concessions, maintenance, utilities, and vendor expenses can unlock substantial NOI and equity from assets they already own.