Essex Property Trust, Inc. (ESS) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the Essex Property Trust first-quarter 2026 earnings call. As a reminder, today's conference call is being recorded.

各位好，歡迎參加 Essex Property Trust 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。提醒各位，今天的電話會議將被錄音。

Statements made on this conference call regarding expected operating results and other future events are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are made based on current expectations, assumptions, and beliefs as well as information available to the company at this time.

本次電話會議中關於預期營運結果及其他未來事件的陳述，屬於涉及風險與不確定性的前瞻性陳述。前瞻性陳述係基於目前的預期、假設與信念，以及公司於此時可取得的資訊所作出。

A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. Further information about these risks can be found on the company's filings with SEC.

多項因素可能導致實際結果與預期出現重大差異。關於這些風險的進一步資訊，請參閱公司向美國證券交易委員會（SEC）提交的文件。

It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Ms. Angela Kleiman, President and Chief Executive Officer for Essex Property Trust. Thank you. Ms. Kleiman, you may begin.

現在很榮幸為各位介紹本次會議主持人——Essex Property Trust 總裁暨執行長 Angela Kleiman 女士。謝謝。Kleiman 女士，請開始。

Good morning, and welcome to Essex's first-quarter earnings call. Today, I will cover our first quarter performance, discuss regional trends, and conclude with an update on the transaction market. Barb Pak will follow with prepared remarks, and Rylan Burns is here for Q&A.

各位早安，歡迎參加 Essex 第一季財報電話會議。今天我將回顧第一季表現、討論各區域趨勢，並以交易市場最新動態作結。接著 Barb Pak 將發表事先準備的談話，Rylan Burns 也在場回答問答。

Starting with the macro environment. US economic conditions year-to-date have generally unfolded in line with our outlook with national labor trends remaining soft.

先從總體環境談起。今年迄今，美國經濟狀況大致符合我們的展望，全國勞動市場趨勢仍偏疲弱。

Additionally, heightened geopolitical tensions and inflationary pressure in recent months have contributed to increased near-term uncertainty. Against this backdrop, we delivered a solid first quarter with core FFO per share exceeding the high end of our guidance range and same property revenues trending ahead of plan.

此外，近幾個月地緣政治緊張升高與通膨壓力，增加了短期不確定性。在此背景下，我們第一季表現穩健，核心 FFO 每股超越指引區間上緣，同店營收走勢也優於計畫。

Two key factors contributed to these results. First, we successfully deployed an occupancy-focused strategy to maximize revenues, generating a 20-basis point year-over-year occupancy gain.

兩項關鍵因素促成這些成果。第一，我們成功推動以入住率為核心的策略以最大化營收，使入住率年增 20 個基點。

Second is the strength in Northern California combined with the durability of our supply-constrained West Coast markets. There is a direct correlation between housing supplies and the cost of housing for consumers. It is no surprise that markets with some of the highest rental rates are typically markets with significant legislative burden and housing providers, which deters building activities, leading to a chronic housing shortage.

第二，是北加州的強勁表現，加上我們供給受限的西岸市場之韌性。住宅供給與消費者住房成本之間存在直接關聯。市場租金最高的地區，往往也是立法負擔較重、對住房提供者限制較多的市場，這會抑制建設活動，導致長期住房短缺，並不令人意外。

Looking forward, permitting activities remain at a historical low in California. And as such, we expect new housing deliveries to remain low at around 0.5% of existing stock for the next several years.

展望未來，加州的核發許可活動仍處於歷史低位。因此，我們預期未來數年新住宅交付量將維持偏低，約為現有存量的 0.5%。

On the demand side, we are seeing early indicators of improvement in three areas: first, job postings from the top 20 technology companies have remained steady despite the layoff headlines; second, elevated levels of venture capital investments in the Bay Area are funding a new wave of startup companies; and third, continue office expansion announcements in our markets.

在需求端，我們在三個面向看到改善的早期跡象：第一，儘管裁員新聞不斷，前 20 大科技公司的職缺發布仍維持穩定；第二，灣區風險投資金額維持高檔，正資助新一波新創公司；第三，我們市場內持續出現辦公室擴張的公告。

In summary, the low level of housing supply throughout our markets provides resilience across a wide range of economic conditions while improving demand indicators position the portfolio for sector-leading, long-term rent growth.

總結而言，我們各市場普遍偏低的住房供給，使投資組合在多種經濟情境下具備韌性；同時，需求指標改善也使投資組合具備在長期租金成長上領先同業的條件。

Moving on to property operating highlights. We achieved same-store blended rent growth of 1.4% for the quarter, which is generally in line with our expectations as we execute an occupancy-focused strategy ahead of the peak leasing season.

接著談物業營運重點。本季同店綜合租金成長為 1.4%，整體符合我們的預期，因我們在租賃旺季前執行以入住率為核心的策略。

From a regional perspective, Northern California was our best market performing ahead of plan for the quarter, with blended rent growth of 3.2% led by San Francisco and San Mateo, followed by Santa Clara County.

從區域來看，北加州是本季表現最佳的市場，整體優於計畫，綜合租金成長 3.2%，由舊金山與聖馬刁（San Mateo）領先，其次為聖塔克拉拉郡（Santa Clara County）。

During the quarter, while occupancy increased by 50 basis points sequentially, we were also able to increase rents, demonstrating the strength of this market. Attractive affordability, favorable demand drivers, and limited supply support our expectations for solid growth to continue in this region.

本季在入住率較前一季提升 50 個基點的同時，我們也能提高租金，展現該市場的強勁。具吸引力的可負擔性、有利的需求驅動因素與有限供給，支持我們對該區域持續穩健成長的預期。

As for Seattle, this region performed in line with our expectations for a slow start to the year, with blended rent growth of negative 80 basis points. This was primarily driven by a soft demand environment, combined with the absorption of supply delivery last year.

至於西雅圖，該區域符合我們對年初緩慢開局的預期，綜合租金成長為負 80 個基點。主要原因是需求環境偏弱，加上去年新增供給交付後的吸收過程。

Encouragingly, during the quarter, we achieved sequential improvements each month in net effective new lease rent growth and occupancy while reducing concessions. With additional office expansions recently announced in the region, we maintain our conviction with the long-term outlook for this market.

令人鼓舞的是，本季我們在新租約淨有效租金成長與入住率方面每月皆呈現逐月改善，同時也降低了優惠（concessions）。隨著近期該區域宣布更多辦公室擴張，我們對此市場的長期展望仍具信心。

On to Southern California, which is closely linked to broader national employment trends. This region also performed on plan with blended rent growth of approximately 1%, led by Orange County and Ventura.

再來是南加州，其與全國就業趨勢高度連動。該區域同樣符合計畫，綜合租金成長約 1%，由橘郡（Orange County）與文圖拉（Ventura）領先。

In Los Angeles, incremental improvements continues at a modest pace. Heading into peak leasing season, we have shifted our operating strategy to driving rent growth across most markets, and our portfolio is well positioned with April financial occupancy at 96.4% and blended lease rate growth north of 3%.

在洛杉磯，逐步改善仍以溫和速度持續。進入租賃旺季前，我們已將營運策略轉向在多數市場推動租金成長；我們的投資組合也具備良好條件，4 月財務入住率為 96.4%，綜合租約租金成長超過 3%。

Turning to transaction activities. With minimal forward-looking supply deliveries and favorable fundamentals, interest in multifamily assets on the West Coast remains healthy, especially in the Bay Area as evidenced by the 50 basis point cap rate compression since 2024.

接著談交易活動。在前瞻供給交付量有限且基本面有利的情況下，市場對西岸多戶住宅資產的興趣仍然健康，尤其是灣區；自 2024 年以來資本化率下壓 50 個基點即為明證。

Essex has been the largest investor in this market in the past two years as we allocated approximately $1.7 billion of capital ahead of the cap rate compression, generating substantial value for our shareholders.

過去兩年，Essex 一直是該市場最大的投資人；我們在資本化率下壓之前配置約 17 億美元資本，為股東創造了可觀價值。

Overall, cap rates across our markets remain consistently in the mid-4% range. However, with our stock trading close to a 6% implied cap rate over the past several months, which is a significant discount to private market valuation, we shipped the gears and repurchased approximately $62 million of stock, thereby continuing our strong capital allocation track record of maximizing accretion for our shareholders.

整體而言，我們市場的資本化率仍穩定維持在 4% 中段區間。然而，過去幾個月我們的股票交易水準接近 6% 的隱含資本化率，較私募市場估值有顯著折價，因此我們調整策略並回購約 6,200 萬美元股票，延續我們在資本配置上為股東最大化增益（accretion）的優良紀錄。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Barb.

接下來我把電話交給 Barb。

Thanks, Angela. Today, I will discuss our first-quarter results and full-year guidance and conclude with comments on the balance sheet. We are pleased to report a solid first quarter with core FFO per share exceeding the midpoint of our guidance range by $0.11.

謝謝你，Angela。今天我將說明第一季結果與全年指引，並以資產負債表的評論作結。我們很高興報告第一季表現穩健，核心 FFO 每股較指引區間中點高出 0.11 美元。

There are three key drivers of the outperformance. First, same property revenues, which grew 2.9% on a year-over-year basis, was 50 basis points ahead of plan and accounted for $0.04 of the beat. Higher occupancy and other income were the key components of better revenue growth during the quarter.

超預期表現有三項關鍵驅動因素。第一，同店營收年增 2.9%，較計畫高出 50 個基點，貢獻了超預期的 0.04 美元。本季較佳的營收成長主要來自更高的入住率與其他收入。

Second, same property operating expense growth was flat on a year-over-year basis, which was lower than expected and accounted for another $0.04. However, this benefit is timing related and expected to reverse in the second half of the year.

第二，同店營運費用年增持平，低於預期，另貢獻 0.04 美元。不過，這項效益與時點有關，預期將在下半年反轉。

Third, non-same property and co-investment NOI make up the remaining $0.03 of outperformance.

第三，非同店與共同投資的 NOI 構成其餘 0.03 美元的超預期表現。

As for our full-year outlook, we are reaffirming our same-property growth and core FFO per share guidance ranges. While we have started off the year in a solid position with revenue growth trending ahead of plan, we'd like to get further visibility into peak leasing season before adjusting our forecast due to the current macro uncertainty.

至於全年展望，我們重申同店成長與核心 FFO 每股指引區間。雖然今年開局穩健、營收成長走勢優於計畫，但鑑於目前總體不確定性，我們希望在調整預測前，先對租賃旺季取得更清晰的能見度。

As it relates to the remainder of our FFO forecast, there are two key factors that are different from our original guidance. First, we expect to receive approximately $90 million in early structured finance redemption proceeds, which are expected to occur in the second quarter. We are pleased to see this early redemption activity despite it causing a $0.07 headwind to our second half forecast as it demonstrates the continued strength of the West Coast markets.

就我們其餘 FFO 預測而言，有兩項關鍵因素與原先指引不同。第一，我們預期將收到約 9,000 萬美元的結構性融資提前贖回款項，預計發生在第二季。我們樂見此提前贖回活動，儘管它會對我們下半年預測造成 0.07 美元的不利影響（headwind），但也顯示西岸市場基本面持續強勁。

The second factor is share buybacks. We took advantage of the significant discount in our stock price and repurchased approximately $62 million at an average price of $243.76, which equates to an attractive FFO yield of 6.5%. As such, the near-term earnings headwinds from the structured finance redemptions is largely offset by the benefits from the buybacks and our full-year forecast is unchanged at this time.

第二項因素是股票回購。我們把握股價顯著折價的機會，以平均每股 243.76 美元回購約 6,200 萬美元，折算為具吸引力的 6.5% FFO 殖利率。因此，結構性融資贖回帶來的短期獲利逆風，大致可由回購效益所抵銷，我們目前的全年預測維持不變。

Concluding with the balance sheet. We recently repaid $450 million in unsecured bond that mature, resulting in limited remaining maturities for the balance of the year, with net debt-to-EBITDA of 5.5 times, over $1 billion in available liquidity, and ample sources of available capital, the balance sheet remains in a strong position.

最後談資產負債表。我們近期償還了 4.5 億美元到期的無擔保公司債，使得今年剩餘到期項目有限；淨負債對 EBITDA 為 5.5 倍，可用流動性超過 10 億美元，且具備充足的可用資本來源，資產負債表仍維持強勁。

I will now turn the call back to the operator for questions.

我現在把電話交回給接線員，進行提問。

(Operator Instructions) Nick Yulico, Scotiabank.

（接線員指示）Scotiabank 的 Nick Yulico。

Thanks. Hi. In terms of the blended rate growth, I know, Angela, you gave the April stats there. I think you said north of 3%. Can you just remind us how to think about how that's going to trend this year to get to your 2.5% guidance for the year?

謝謝。嗨。就混合利率成長而言，我知道，Angela，你剛才提供了 4 月的數據。我想你說超過 3%。你能否再提醒我們，該如何看待今年這個趨勢，才能達到你們全年 2.5% 的指引？

Good morning, Nick, and thanks for your question. We're on plan as it relates to our guidance. And so if you look at first quarter coming in at 1.4% and April is already north of 3%, it's -- we don't anticipate challenges to hitting that 2.5% for the year. And we -- at this point, we're still anticipating the first half and second half are pretty similar to each other. And so things are on plan.

早安，Nick，謝謝你的提問。就我們的指引而言，一切都按計畫進行。所以如果你看第一季是 1.4%，而 4 月已經超過 3%，我們——不預期在達成全年 2.5% 上會有挑戰。而且我們——目前仍預期上半年與下半年的表現相當接近。所以一切都在計畫之內。

Okay. Great. Thanks. And then second question, I guess, Barb, you talked about the FFO guidance and the $90 million. I just want to be clear, the $90 million of additional or early redemptions. Is that like a pull forward for redemptions you assumed in the back half of the year? Or is it just an additional level of capital coming back altogether? And how should we think about -- is there any potential for that FFO headwind to get even worse throughout the year if this repeats again? Thanks.

好的。很好。謝謝。那第二個問題，我想，Barb，你談到 FFO 指引以及那 9,000 萬美元。我想確認一下，這 9,000 萬美元的額外或提前贖回，是把你們原本假設在下半年發生的贖回提前了嗎？還是說這是額外回收的資本總量？另外我們該如何看待——如果今年內又再發生一次，FFO 的逆風是否有可能變得更糟？謝謝。

Yeah, Nick, that's a good question. So the $90 million is effectively maturities that were set to mature in '27 and '28. And so it's been pulled forward into 2026. And because of that, we don't have any redemptions in '27 and '28 now. So the headwind is effectively behind us at this point.

是的，Nick，這是個好問題。這 9,000 萬美元基本上是原本預計在 2027 年和 2028 年到期的到期款項。因此被提前到 2026 年。也因為如此，我們在 2027 年和 2028 年現在就沒有贖回了。所以這個逆風在目前這個時間點基本上已經過去了。

Jana Galan, Bank of America.

Jana Galan，美國銀行。

Hi. Thank you. So just a quick question on the change in methodology for the net effective rate growth. I guess, like, one, what drove the decision to change it? And then two, when comparing with the prior disclosure, it appears like it's higher in 2Q, 3Q and then lower in 4Q and 1Q. Would that be correct?

嗨，謝謝。關於淨有效利率成長的計算方法變更，我想快速問一下：第一，做出改變的原因是什麼？第二，與先前揭露相比，看起來在第二季、第三季較高，而在第四季、第一季較低。這樣理解正確嗎？

Jana, you are right on point on the cadence when it comes to the lease rates. So effectively, we made this change, and we actually signaled this change last year when we reported our detailed like-for-like lease terms, but we also reported all lease terms because with feedback from investors that it was easier for everyone to look at how we report the same way as our peers.

Jana，你對於租賃利率的節奏判斷非常到位。基本上，我們做了這個改變，而且其實我們去年在揭露更詳細的同店（like-for-like）租約條款時就已經預告過；同時我們也揭露了所有租約條款，因為投資人回饋表示，若我們的揭露方式能和同業一致，大家會更容易比較與理解。

So just really to be in line with our peers. So there's no change to our business and certainly no change to how we approach our business. And as far as the cadence, all leases means there'll be a little bit more variability. And with the highs in the second and third quarter and low around the first and the fourth quarter.

所以主要就是為了與同業一致。這不代表我們的業務有任何改變，當然也不代表我們經營方式有任何改變。至於節奏方面，採用「所有租約」會帶來一些較大的波動性，第二、第三季較高，而第一、第四季附近較低。

Thank you. And I appreciate the color on the April operating stats. I was wondering if you could share where renewals are being sent out for the summer.

謝謝。也感謝你提供 4 月營運數據的補充說明。我想請問，你們夏季的續約通知目前大概是以什麼幅度送出？

Yeah, yeah. We are actually in a good position. We continue to be with renewal sending around 5%. And of course, that can get negotiated. But so far, our renewals have been pretty sticky, which is a good indication of the fundamentals of our markets.

是的，是的。我們其實處於不錯的位置。我們續約通知仍大約以 5% 的幅度送出。當然，這之後可能會被協商調整。但到目前為止，我們的續約黏著度相當高，這也很好地反映了我們市場基本面的穩健。

Eric Wolfe, Citi.

Eric Wolfe，花旗。

It's Nick Joseph here with Eric. California is off to a strong start, but obviously, there have been some recent layoff announcements from some of the larger tech companies. Have you seen any changes in that market or all the forward indicators holding strong?

我是 Nick Joseph，和 Eric 一起提問。加州開局很強，但顯然近期一些大型科技公司宣布裁員。你們在該市場有看到任何變化嗎？還是所有前瞻指標仍然維持強勁？

Yeah, Nick, that's a good question. The demand side is something we do watch closely and BLS visibility is not as great nowadays. But what we are seeing is the lay of announcements, if you look through to the war notices, it shows that the majority of the layoffs are in our markets. These are -- these layoffs apply to global locations. And a couple of areas that we track that happy to share with you that gives you a better forward-looking indication.

是的，Nick，這是個好問題。需求端確實是我們密切關注的面向，而如今從 BLS（美國勞工統計局）取得的能見度不如以往。不過我們看到的是，若你深入看 WARN 通知，會發現多數裁員並不只發生在我們的市場——這些裁員——其實適用於全球各地的據點。另外我們也追蹤幾個指標，很樂意分享，能提供更好的前瞻性訊號。

One is that when we look at the top 20 tech job openings, they remain steady. And it's actually improved a little bit in the past couple of months, but we don't expect that to accelerate. Having said that, things are just fine on the ground.

第一，我們觀察前 20 大科技職缺，仍維持穩定，過去幾個月甚至略有改善，但我們不預期會加速成長。話雖如此，第一線的情況一切都很好。

We also look at both new and continued unemployment claims, which remains at a low level. Now this tells us that the people that are displayed in our markets, they're able to find another job quickly. But most importantly is our Northern California performance, which is how that market has the highest concentration of tech companies and it's our best-performing region.

我們也看新申請與續領失業救濟金的人數，仍維持在低檔。這告訴我們，在我們市場中被裁撤的人，能夠很快找到另一份工作。但最重要的是我們北加州的表現，因為那個市場科技公司集中度最高，而它也是我們表現最好的區域。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

Steve Sakwa, Evercore.

Steve Sakwa，Evercore。

Yeah. Thanks. Good morning out there. Maybe just going back to the, I guess, the repayment. Is there any chance that you could backfill that with, I guess, new investments? I don't know exactly what the market looks like to make some of these new investments and where your head is in terms of making new investments.

是的，謝謝。各位早安。我想回到那個——我猜是還款的部分。你們是否有機會用新的投資來補上？我不太確定目前市場狀況是否適合做這些新投資，也想了解你們對於進行新投資的想法與方向。

Steve, Rylan here. As we communicated, we remain actively involved in many conversations related to new investments on the structured finance side. We were not anticipating going into this year that we get that $90 million back. But as Barb alluded to, this business has been level set at a lower rate. So we're continuing those conversations.

Steve，我是 Rylan。如同我們先前溝通的，我們在結構性融資（structured finance）方面，仍積極參與許多與新投資相關的討論。我們在今年初並未預期會回收那 9,000 萬美元。但如 Barb 所提到，這項業務已在較低的水準上重新校準。因此我們會持續進行這些討論。

We're tracking a few deals that we think could present really attractive risk-adjusted returns. So we remain committed to the business, and we'll continue to look for opportunities when the opportunities present themselves.

我們正在追蹤幾筆交易，認為可能帶來非常具吸引力的風險調整後報酬。因此我們仍致力於這項業務，並會在機會出現時持續尋找與把握。

Okay. And maybe just going back to the expense. Can you provide just maybe a little bit more color? I mean, I realized it was pretty flat in the first quarter, and it sounds like a lot of that was timing. Can you maybe just provide a little more detail on where the surprises came in the first quarter and what, I guess, is likely to reverse itself in the back half of the year?

好的。那再回到費用面。你能否再多提供一些說明？我的意思是，我知道第一季看起來相當持平，而聽起來其中很大一部分是時點因素。你能否更具體說明第一季的意外主要來自哪裡，以及下半年哪些項目可能會回轉？

Yeah, Steve, this is Barb. On the expense side, it really came down to lower controllable expense spend in the first quarter as we delayed projects from the first quarter into the second and third quarters. And so that's really what drove it. For the full year, our controllable expense spend is supposed to -- is expected to be around 2%. So it's still very low and anemic, and we do still think it's going to hit at this point. It was just a delay in our spend.

是的，Steve，我是 Barb。費用面主要是因為第一季可控費用支出較低，因為我們把一些專案從第一季延後到第二季與第三季。因此這就是主要驅動因素。就全年而言，我們的可控費用支出預計——預期大約在 2% 左右。所以仍然非常低、相當疲弱，而我們目前仍認為可以達成。只是支出時點延後而已。

Great. Thank you.

很好。謝謝。

Brad Heffern, RBC.

Brad Heffern，RBC。

Yeah. Hey, there. Thank you. Barb, last quarter, you said that you were assuming no redemption proceeds for a couple of the 2026 maturities. I was wondering if you have any update there, if that's still the case?

是的。嗨，謝謝。Barb，上季你提到你們假設 2026 年到期的其中幾筆不會有贖回回收款。我想問一下現在有沒有更新，是否仍是如此？

Yeah. So good memory. That is the case. We did have one of our investments did mature at the end of March, and the sponsor did contribute some additional equity, and we did grant a small extension on that investment. And there is still a lot of moving parts of that investment and not everything is finalized.

是的。所以你記得很清楚。確實仍是如此。我們其中一筆投資在 3 月底到期，而贊助方（sponsor）投入了一些額外股權，我們也對該投資給予了小幅展期。該投資仍有很多變動因素，並非所有事項都已定案。

And while we could have continued to accrue from an FFO perspective and it would have benefited our FFO, given some of the uncertainty related to this investment, we decided not to continue to accrue. There is value there, and there will be upside to our FFO, but it really is depending on the timing of when we can sell a few of these open items. And right now, it looks like it's probably an early '27 event, but more to follow as we go forward.

而且，雖然從 FFO 的角度我們本可以繼續計提（accrue），這也會有利於我們的 FFO，但鑑於與該投資相關的不確定性，我們決定不再繼續計提。那裡是有價值的，未來也會對我們的 FFO 帶來上行空間，但很大程度取決於我們何時能出售其中幾個尚未結案的項目之時點。目前看起來可能會在 2027 年初發生，但後續我們會再更新。

The other large investment that we had stopped accruing on in the fourth quarter, we're in ongoing discussions with the sponsor that one doesn't mature for a couple more months. So more to follow on that one. No difference in how we budgeted that one as of yet.

至於另一筆我們在第四季停止計提的較大投資，我們正與贊助方持續討論；那一筆還要再過幾個月才到期。所以後續也會再更新。目前在預算編列上，對那一筆我們尚未做任何調整。

Okay. Got it. And then just a follow on to the change in the spread methodology. Do you have the number handy for what 1Q would have been under the old methodology, just so that we can compare to what we had in our model?

好的，了解。接著追問一下關於利差（spread）計算方法的變更。你手邊有沒有舊方法下 1Q 會是多少的數字，讓我們可以跟模型裡的數字做比較？

Sure. Happy to. It's Angela here. So on a like-for-like Q1 blended would have been 2%. So a little bit higher than on all ease. And the components of our new lease will be negative 1.2% and renewal will be the same, 3.9%.

當然，可以的。很樂意。這裡是 Angela。以同口徑來看，Q1 的綜合（blended）會是 2%，所以比「所有租約」（all lease）口徑略高一些。我們新租約（new lease）的組成會是負 1.2%，續租（renewal）則相同，為 3.9%。

Okay. Appreciate it.

好的，謝謝，感激。

Jamie Feldman, Wells Fargo.

Jamie Feldman，富國銀行（Wells Fargo）。

Great. Thanks for taking my question. So I appreciate the color on blends in 1Q across the regions and even in April. Can you talk about new versus renewal in April? And then also for 1Q, can you talk about new versus renewal across the regions?

很好，謝謝讓我提問。我很感謝你們提供 1Q 各區域、甚至 4 月的綜合（blends）細節。你們能談談 4 月新租約（new）相對於續租（renewal）的情況嗎？另外，針對 1Q，也能談談各區域新租約相對於續租的表現嗎？

Sure, happy to. So in April, I'll start with April. New versus renewal, let's see, new is about -- hold on a second. I have it somewhere. Here we go. Thank you. New is about negative 90 basis points and the renewal is about 5%, so that takes April to 3.1%.

當然，很樂意。那我先從 4 月開始。新租約對比續租，讓我看一下——等一下，我把數字放在某處。找到了，謝謝。新租約大約是負 90 個基點，續租大約是 5%，所以 4 月合計就是 3.1%。

And on a regional basis, Northern California once again, the Chinese star, with the blend at north of 5%, and followed by Seattle was a blend north of 2%, and Southern California around 1.5%. So that gets you to that 3.1%.

以區域來看，北加州再次是「明星」，綜合（blend）在 5% 以上；接著是西雅圖，綜合在 2% 以上；南加州大約 1.5%。加總起來就是 3.1%。

So it's generally playing out as we had anticipated. And I know I had guided to for the full year, renewal around 3% to 4% and new around 0% to 1%, and all the markets are pretty much coming in in line with the exception of Northern California outperforming.

整體來說，走勢大致符合我們先前的預期。我也曾指引全年續租約在 3% 到 4%，新租約在 0% 到 1%；除了北加州表現優於預期之外，其他市場基本都符合。

Okay. Thank you for that. And there's been a lot of political tax headlines across some of the West Coast markets. I mean, any thoughts or any feedback from tenants if there's any implications to demand? Or it sounds like you're feeling pretty good about the job market and job postings. But any color or conversations with your peers about how people are thinking about the political environment?

好的，謝謝。西岸一些市場最近有很多政治與稅務相關的新聞標題。你們有什麼想法嗎？或是租戶那邊有沒有回饋，顯示對需求可能有影響？聽起來你們對就業市場與職缺發布仍很有信心。不過，能否分享一些你們與同業交流時，大家如何看待政治環境的影響？

Yeah, that's a good question, and it's so hard to predict, and it's just too early to know how this will play out. There is the wealth tax that probably what you're referring to. But at the same time, there's also what we're seeing is a lot of opposition to it, and there's actually a counterbalance measure to advocate responsible expense management rather than posting more taxes.

是的，這是個好問題，但真的很難預測，現在也還太早，無法知道會如何發展。你提到的應該是財富稅。不過同時，我們也看到有很多反對聲浪，並且也有一項對應的提案，主張應推動負責任的支出管理，而不是再加徵更多稅負。

So I think this will -- we just need a little more time to see how this plays out. But we've not seen any impact to our business, and we've not heard from others about having a direct impact to Essex or multifamily directly.

所以我認為——我們需要再多一點時間觀察後續發展。但目前我們沒有看到對我們業務的影響，也沒有聽到其他人說對 Essex 或多戶住宅（multifamily）有直接影響。

Okay. Thank you.

好的，謝謝。

Austin Wurschmidt, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Austin Wurschmidt，KeyBanc Capital Markets。

Hey. Hello, there. Could you guys speak to affordability within Northern California and just given the optimism that you highlighted around job trends, and supply conditions? I guess, what the runway looks like for you to continue to push on blended lease rate growth within that region?

嗨，你們好。你們能談談北加州的可負擔性（affordability）嗎？考量你們提到對就業趨勢與供給狀況的樂觀，我想問的是，在該區域你們持續推動綜合租金成長（blended lease rate growth）的「跑道」（runway）看起來如何？

Hey, Austin, this is Rylan here. I mean, this has been a key component of our fundamental thesis on Northern California for the past several years. You've seen significant steady increases in household income growth over the past decade continue through COVID.

嗨 Austin，我是 Rylan。這其實是我們過去幾年對北加州基本面投資論點（fundamental thesis）的關鍵組成之一。過去十年你可以看到家庭收入成長顯著且穩定，並且在 COVID 期間仍持續。

So as it stands today, our current rent to median income ratios in Northern California stand at around 21.5% compared to a 20-year average of almost 26% and a historical peak over the past 20 years, closer to 32%. So there is significant rent upside on those metrics alone to get back to a point that's more in balance or closer to those historical peaks.

以目前來看，北加州我們的租金占家庭收入中位數比率（rent to median income ratios）約為 21.5%，相較於 20 年平均接近 26%，而過去 20 年的歷史高點更接近 32%。因此，僅從這些指標來看，租金仍有相當大的上行空間，可以回到更平衡、或更接近歷史高點的水準。

So again, it's not the primary driver, but it is a fundamental thesis that we feel very attractive as it relates to Northern California. Wages continue to increase in these markets. And yeah, again, I think the consumer is feeling very healthy in Northern California in particular.

所以再說一次，這不是主要驅動因素，但就北加州而言，這確實是我們認為非常有吸引力的基本面論點。這些市場的薪資仍在上升。而且，是的，我認為特別是在北加州，消費者狀況非常健康。

That's helpful. And then just switching maybe to Southern California. I mean, last quarter, I think you indicated maybe it was L.A., specifically, that conditions were stabilizing and maybe you were seeing some early signs of rent growth improving. What's the latest thoughts and outlook for that region as well? Thank you.

很有幫助。接著可能切換到南加州。我的印象是上季你們提到也許是洛杉磯（L.A.）特別在穩定中，並且看到一些租金成長改善的早期跡象。對該區域最新的看法與展望是什麼？謝謝。

Yeah, Austin, good question. L.A. is progressing at a glacial pace continues to be our most challenging. So for example, if we excluded L.A. portfolio, our April new lease rates actually would be 180 basis points higher. It will flip to 90 basis points positive.

是的，Austin，好問題。洛杉磯進展非常緩慢，仍然是我們最具挑戰的市場。舉例來說，如果我們排除 L.A. 投資組合，我們 4 月的新租約租金其實會高出 180 個基點，會轉為正 90 個基點。

Having said that, we didn't anticipate things to move quickly. We expect the progress to be slow and choppy, which has been the case. And so we don't get too caught up by short-term numbers because you'll see puts and takes. For example, if you look at economic occupancy compared sequentially from fourth quarter to first quarter, it's a slight decline.

話雖如此，我們本來就不預期會很快改善。我們預期進展會緩慢且起伏不定，而實際也確實如此。因此我們不會太被短期數字牽著走，因為你會看到各種拉抬與抵銷。比如說，如果你看經濟入住率（economic occupancy）從第四季到第一季的連續比較，是小幅下滑。

But if you look at blended, it actually went up by 70 basis points. So you're going to see that dynamic to continue to play out. But the [net-net] is that this market is stable. We are -- we've seen the trough, and there's now -- it's trending better, but just slow.

但如果你看綜合（blended），其實上升了 70 個基點。所以你會看到這種動態持續出現。不過整體（[net-net]）來說，這個市場是穩定的。我們——已經看到谷底，現在——趨勢在改善，只是速度很慢。

Thank you. Appreciate the time.

謝謝，感謝你們撥冗。

John Kim, BMO Capital Markets.

John Kim，BMO Capital Markets。

Thank you. We're halfway or half an hour into this call, and I don't think you've mentioned AI. So I'm wondering if you feel like you're getting a direct benefit or beneficiary of AI job growth? Or is it more indirect for you or more moderate given most of your assets are in Santa Clara and San Mateo County. I was just wondering if you could just comments on if you're seeing a lot of tenants in your market employed by AI companies.

謝謝。我們這通電話已經進行到一半、或說半小時了，我覺得你們還沒提到 AI。所以我想問，你們是否覺得自己正直接受惠於 AI 帶動的就業成長？還是對你們而言比較偏間接受惠、或因為你們大多數資產在聖塔克拉拉（Santa Clara）與聖馬刁郡（San Mateo County）而受惠程度較溫和？我想請你們評論一下，是否看到你們市場裡有很多租戶是在 AI 公司任職。

Sure thing, John. I do believe that we are getting a direct benefit from AI, especially as you get closer to San Francisco. But more importantly, what we don't have clarity on is all the start-ups that's having because of AI. And that is throughout our markets. And if you look at the strength of our market, while Downtown is doing strong or doing well. It also is still in recovery because it recovered later than the Peninsula.

當然，John。我確實相信我們正直接受惠於 AI，尤其是越靠近舊金山的地方。不過更重要的是，我們對 AI 帶來的所有新創公司（start-ups）規模與影響仍缺乏清晰度，而這些新創遍布我們的市場。若你看我們市場的強度，雖然市中心（Downtown）表現強勁或說不錯，但它仍在復甦中，因為它比半島（the Peninsula）更晚復甦。

And so we certainly anticipate that benefit of AI to continue. And more importantly, we are also seeing a lot of these large AI companies expand to the Peninsula as well. So over the long term, I think all of our markets will continue to benefit, particularly in the suburban markets.

因此我們當然預期 AI 的利多會持續。更重要的是，我們也看到許多大型 AI 公司正在擴張到半島地區。從長期來看，我認為我們所有市場都會持續受惠，尤其是郊區市場（suburban markets）。

Okay. And then I wanted to ask Jana's question maybe in a little bit different way, but looking at your lease growth under the old definition, you had a peak in the second quarter and a deceleration of 70 basis points in the third quarter. Under your new definition, that drop-off is steeper. It's 130 basis points. So do you see that a similar dynamic occurring this year? Or do you think the seasonal trends will be different and that drop off be more moderate?

好的。接著我想用稍微不同的方式問 Jana 的問題：在舊定義下，你們的租約成長在第二季達到高點，第三季放緩 70 個基點；在新定義下，這個回落更陡，是 130 個基點。你們認為今年也會出現類似的動態嗎？還是你們覺得季節性趨勢會不同，回落幅度會更溫和？

Yeah, John, that's a good question. Big picture from -- when you look at all lease perspective, it's going to be -- you're going to have more variability. Now I don't know the exact magnitude at this point because we are just starting to enter into our peak leasing season. But it wouldn't surprise me that, that drop becomes more significant. Because keep in mind, all leases means you're going to have different terms. So it's going to just have a lot more noise in it.

是的，John，這是個好問題。從大方向來看——當你用「所有租約」（all lease）的角度看，波動性會更大。現在我還不知道確切幅度，因為我們才剛開始進入租賃旺季。但如果回落變得更顯著，我也不會意外。因為請記住，「所有租約」代表你會有不同的租期，所以數據裡會有更多雜訊。

Okay. Thank you.

好的，謝謝。

Alexander Goldfarb, Piper Sandler.

Alexander Goldfarb，Piper Sandler。

Hey. Good morning out there. So two questions. The first is on Seattle. We hear different things like Eastside super strong, Seattle CBD softer. Certainly, on the office side, we hear that and then the apartment side sounds like the same. But yet, there's a lot of job growth out there, especially on the Eastside.

嗨，早安。我有兩個問題。第一個是關於西雅圖。我們聽到不同的說法，例如 Eastside 非常強、而西雅圖 CBD 較疲弱。當然，在辦公室市場我們也聽到這樣的情況，而公寓端聽起來也類似。但同時那邊的就業成長又很強，尤其是在 Eastside。

So can you just provide a little bit more color on how the market breaks out. Seattle CBD would certainly seem culturally to be a little bit more exciting than maybe the 95 Bellevue. But can you just provide more color of how the residents are looking at the broader market and how you guys are thinking about where you want to own more assets, divest assets, et cetera?

那你能否再多補充一些市場如何分化的細節？西雅圖 CBD 在文化氛圍上看起來確實比可能是 95 Bellevue 更令人興奮一些。但你能否再多說明一下，住戶如何看待更廣泛的市場，以及你們如何思考在哪些地方想持有更多資產、處分資產等等？

Hey, Alex. Yeah, it's a good question. With Seattle, it's a combination of two things: it's demand and supply because Seattle historically generates more supply than California. So it's the impact of those two playing out that then drives the rent growth. So Eastside has performed better than CBD, although not by a huge margin from what we're seeing.

嗨，Alex。是的，這是個好問題。就西雅圖而言，這是兩件事的組合：需求與供給，因為西雅圖歷來新增供給比加州更多。所以就是這兩者互相作用的影響，進而推動租金成長。因此從我們看到的情況來看，Eastside 的表現優於 CBD，雖然差距不算很大。

But over the long term, Eastside has historically outperformed mostly because it has a strong employer base, but lower supply. And we do expect that to continue. And as far as -- generally speaking, this is a market that has greater highs and lows because of supply combination of the supply. And so with first quarter, demand was soft, and we anticipated that. So we -- the performance was pretty much in line with our expectations.

但從長期來看，Eastside 歷來表現較佳，主要因為它有強勁的雇主基礎，但供給較少。我們也預期這種情況會持續。整體而言——一般來說，這個市場因為供給的組合而呈現更大的高低波動。因此在第一季，需求偏弱，而我們也預期到了。所以我們——表現大致符合我們的預期。

Okay. And then the second question is -- and obviously, looking at public information, but Camden has their portfolio out there for sale. You guys obviously looked at everything. Are you -- the interest that you hear that they're receiving, is it what you expected? Or are you surprised by maybe the number of people who are coming to look at the portfolio?

好的。那第二個問題是——而且顯然是看公開資訊——Camden 把他們的投資組合拿出來出售。你們顯然也看過所有東西。你們——你們聽到他們收到的興趣，符合你們的預期嗎？還是你們對於來看這個投資組合的人數感到驚訝？

I'm just trying to get a sense of the appetite for California real estate, Southern Cal real estate. If it's in line from an institutional perspective, if it's more than you're like, wow, there are a lot more people coming or wow, I would have thought more people would have come? Just trying to get a sense for the investment appetite as people look at California versus other parts of the country.

我只是想了解一下對加州不動產、南加州不動產的胃納。如果從機構投資人的角度來看是符合預期，還是比你想的更多——像是，哇，有更多人來看；或是，哇，我原本以為會有更多人來？只是想了解當投資人比較加州與全國其他地區時，投資意願大概是什麼樣子。

Hey, Alex. Rylan here. As you mentioned, we do look at everything in our markets. We're also subject to nondisclosure agreements. So I can't elaborate on details on any one deal specifically. But what I would say is I feel like there has been a significant uptick in terms of capital interest on the West Coast, partly driven by performance issues you're seeing throughout the rest of the country and the relative strength and the forward-looking fundamentals, particularly as it related to supply as well as some of the demand drivers that Angela mentioned.

嗨，Alex。我是 Rylan。如你提到的，我們確實會看我們市場裡的所有案子。我們也受到保密協議的約束，所以我不能就任何單一交易的細節多做說明。但我想說的是，我覺得西岸的資金興趣確實顯著升溫，部分是因為你在全國其他地區看到的表現問題，以及相對強勁、前瞻性的基本面，特別是與供給相關，還有 Angela 提到的一些需求驅動因素。

So I think there's been an increase in capital interest on assets in the West Coast. You've seen this in terms of the cap rate compression we've seen in Northern California. And as we look at the fundamentals over the next several years, I wouldn't be surprised if that continues. So very healthy demand for assets on the West Coast.

所以我認為西岸資產的資金興趣有所增加。你也從北加州我們看到的資本化率（cap rate）壓縮中看到了這點。當我們看未來幾年的基本面時，我不會意外這種趨勢會持續。因此西岸資產的需求非常健康。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Adam Kramer, Morgan Stanley.

Adam Kramer，Morgan Stanley。

Hey. Thanks for the time here, guys. I just wanted to ask about renewal growth trends. And I recognize the methodological change here that might be impacting this comparison I'm about to make, but I guess just bear with me. So if I look at Q4 2024 versus Q1 2025, looks like about a 10 basis point decel in renewal growth.

嗨。謝謝你們撥時間。我想問一下續租成長的趨勢。我也理解你們這裡有方法論的變更，可能會影響我接下來要做的比較，但就先請你們包涵一下。所以如果我看 2024 年第四季對比 2025 年第一季，看起來續租成長大約放緩了 10 個基點。

If I look at what you guys just reported yesterday, it looks like it was more about an 80 basis point decel this year. So just wondering I guess, number one, if the methodology changes played any impact here on just what's happening with the renewal growth, maybe they're an operational or strategic change in terms of how you guys are thinking about renewal growth. Maybe just wanted to focus on that piece year-to-date, just that Q-over-Q decel that you reported last night.

如果我看你們昨天剛公布的內容，今年看起來更像是放緩了大約 80 個基點。所以我想問，第一，方法論的變更是否對續租成長的表現造成任何影響？也許你們在續租成長的思考上有一些營運或策略上的改變？我想聚焦在今年迄今這一塊，也就是你們昨晚報告的那個季對季放緩。

Yeah. Hey, Adam, good question. And as far as our pricing methodology or operating strategy, it hasn't changed. The reporting change through all leases is really a reflection of what -- just to make things easier for comparative purposes for our peers versus our peers. But ultimately, we continue to focus on maximizing revenues, and we don't manage to a specific metric, so what you're seeing on renewal is really an output, not an input.

是的。嗨，Adam，問得很好。就我們的定價方法或營運策略而言，並沒有改變。把報表改成涵蓋所有租約，主要只是反映——只是為了讓同業之間更容易做可比性比較。但最終，我們仍然專注於收入最大化，而且我們不會以某個特定指標來管理，所以你在續租上看到的其實是結果（output），不是投入（input）。

And ultimately, we can manufacture a high lease rate by reducing occupancy, but you wouldn't want to do that. And just back to the basics, we're running a business here. And the goal is to try to maximize revenues. So I wouldn't get too caught up on the renewal rates. At a minimum, I would point you to look at the blend.

而且最終，我們可以透過降低入住率來「製造」很高的租金漲幅，但你不會想那樣做。回到最基本的，我們是在經營一門生意，目標是盡可能把收入最大化。所以我不會在續租率上過度糾結。至少，我會建議你去看 blended（綜合）數字。

The blends have improved, continue to improve sequentially. And ultimately, that is what really hits the bottom line. The combination of your blended and your occupancy.

blends 已經改善，並且持續逐季改善。最終，真正影響損益的是這個：你的綜合表現加上你的入住率的組合。

That's helpful. Thank you. And then just maybe switching gears to capital allocation. I don't think we've touched on that yet. I recognize there was some buyback activity in the quarter and subsequent to quarter end. I don't think you did much, if any, buybacks last year.

這很有幫助，謝謝。那接著也許換個話題談資本配置。我想我們還沒談到這個。我知道本季以及季後你們有一些回購活動。我想你們去年幾乎沒有、甚至完全沒有做回購。

So a little bit of a shift there. Stock has moved a little bit versus the average share price that you bought back at. So just wondering as you sit here today with where the stock is, how do you think about stock ranking capital allocation opportunities? And where does the buyback fit into that?

所以這裡有一點轉變。股價相對於你們回購的平均價格也有些變動。所以我想問，以你們今天所處的位置、以目前股價來看，你們如何看待股票在資本配置機會中的排序？回購在其中扮演什麼角色？

Hey, Adam. It's Angela here again. I do want to point to last year, the environment was different in that cap rate compression has not really take hold, and we were very opportunistic in our capital allocation strategy. And by buying assets before cap rate compression, we were actually able to generate a lot of accretion. And also the pricing level was different back then. I'm very pleased with our finance team executing at that $243 pricing, on average. That's a terrific execution.

嗨，Adam。我是 Angela。我想先指出，去年環境不同，因為資本化率壓縮其實還沒有真正形成，而我們在資本配置策略上非常機會主義。透過在 cap rate 壓縮之前買入資產，我們其實能創造很多增益（accretion）。而且當時的定價水準也不同。我對我們財務團隊以平均 243 美元的價格執行非常滿意，這是很出色的執行。

So what you'll see us do is we're going to be thoughtful and opportunistic. And at every point, when you look at the investment spectrum, we're going to pick our spots. And so that means that there's not an exact price today because the relative value will change based on what's available to us in the future.

所以你會看到我們的做法是：我們會審慎且把握機會。在任何時點，當你看整個投資光譜時，我們會選擇最合適的切入點。因此，今天不會有一個精確的價格門檻，因為相對價值會隨著未來可供我們選擇的機會而改變。

Great. Thank you,

很好，謝謝。

Haendel St. Juste, Mizuho Securities.

Haendel St. Juste，Mizuho Securities。

Hey. Good morning, out there. I wanted to go back to Seattle. Your tone there seems to be more constructive to -- relative to L.A., where it sounds like things will be more challenged for a bit longer. So is your view on Seattle, I guess, the more constructive, more hopeful you tied to that reduction in supply you're referring to?

嗨。大家早安。我想回到西雅圖。你們在那邊的語氣似乎更偏正面——相較於洛杉磯，聽起來那邊的挑戰可能還會持續更久一些。所以你們對西雅圖較為建設性、較有希望的看法，是不是與你們提到的供給減少有關？

Perhaps, are there other KPIs you're watching more closely and curious what those are and what they're telling you? And when do you think we can expect Seattle to track a bit more closely to San Francisco, which historically this year a lot of the same demand drivers? Thanks.

另外，是否還有其他你們更密切關注的 KPI？我也好奇那些是什麼，以及它們傳達了什麼訊號？你們認為何時可以期待西雅圖的走勢更貼近舊金山——而舊金山在歷史上、今年也有很多相同的需求驅動因素？謝謝。

Yeah. Hey, Haendel. Yes, I think you picked up on my tone being more constructive on Seattle for a couple of reasons. One, you mentioned on the supply, I think that it certainly has a direct impact. And first quarter, we did expect that legacy absorption for last year is going to have some overhang. So it's good that we are mostly behind that.

是的。嗨，Haendel。是的，我想你有注意到我對西雅圖的語氣更偏正面，原因有幾個。第一，你提到供給，我認為它確實有直接影響。而第一季，我們也預期去年累積的吸納（absorption）會帶來一些拖累，所以目前大多已經走過那段影響，這是好事。

But more importantly, as we look at where leases are, while Q1 overall lease rate was negative, the rate actually positive in March and has continued in April. And we are aware of that because this is our most seasonal market, it can flip quickly. And so the fundamentals are quite sound in this market. And so we do view that it already has started to trend toward what -- at the midpoint of our expectations.

但更重要的是，當我們看租約的狀況時，雖然第一季整體租賃租金變動率是負的，但其實 3 月轉為正值，並且在 4 月持續。我們也知道這點，因為這是我們季節性最強的市場，可能很快就會翻轉。因此這個市場的基本面相當穩健。我們確實認為它已經開始朝向——在我們預期區間的中點附近——的方向趨勢發展。

Maybe unfair to ask, but I'll try anyway. Would it be your expectation that Seattle would perform more closely to San Fran next year narrow the gap?

也許這問題有點不公平，但我還是試著問。你們是否預期西雅圖明年會更接近舊金山的表現、縮小差距？

That's a good question. I have a -- I'm not sure on the exact timing. We are seeing office announcements and expansions into Seattle, and you would expect that Seattle does follow the Northern California market. It's hard to predict the actual timing because once they expand, they're going to have to hire, and we don't know how long that's going to take.

這是個好問題。我有一個——我不確定確切的時間點。我們看到在西雅圖的辦公室公告與擴張，而你會預期西雅圖確實會跟隨北加州市場。實際時點很難預測，因為一旦他們擴張，就必須招募人員，而我們不知道那會花多久。

I would tell you that at this point, just even on the renewal side, Seattle is starting to catch up the Bay Area market, which is a good sign. So it tells us it's going to get there. I just don't have enough data to be able to tell you when.

我會告訴你，就目前而言，即便只看續約端，西雅圖也開始追上灣區市場，這是個好跡象。所以這告訴我們它會到那個水準。我只是沒有足夠的數據能告訴你會在什麼時候。

Fair enough. Fair enough. Second question is on concessions. Maybe some color on where they stand today across the portfolio and how that compares to a year ago, last quarter, some context? Thank you.

可以理解。可以理解。第二個問題是關於讓利（concessions）。能否提供一些現況的補充說明：目前在整個投資組合的水準如何？與一年前、上一季相比如何？給一些背景脈絡？謝謝。

Sure. Happy to. So concessions, this -- it's not a whole lot different. So first quarter concession for the portfolio was about six days. And last year, first quarter was about four days. So it's not a huge variation.

當然，很樂意。所以讓利方面，這——差異不大。投資組合第一季的讓利大約是 6 天；而去年第一季大約是 4 天。所以變動不算大。

I think the largest area is really L.A. continues to be lumpy. And so L.A. concessions this year is a little bit higher than last year, although that's not anything that we're surprised by. San Diego is a little higher because of supply that I talked about, which you would expect. And then the rest of it is generally performing in line.

我認為最大的一塊其實是洛杉磯仍然比較起伏不定。因此今年洛杉磯的讓利比去年略高，但這並不出乎我們意料。聖地牙哥因為我提到的供給因素而略高，這也符合預期。其餘地區整體表現大致一致。

Okay. Thank you much.

好的。非常感謝。

Julien Blouin, Goldman Sachs.

Julien Blouin，高盛。

Yeah. Hi. Thank you for taking my question, and I'm sorry if I missed it. But on the new reporting last year, was April the highest blend month? I'm just trying to get a sense on that north of 3% for April. Would you expect it to be even higher as we move into May and June?

是的，嗨。謝謝讓我提問，如果我漏聽了也抱歉。關於去年新的揭露口徑，4 月是不是最高的 blended（綜合）月份？我只是想了解一下 4 月超過 3% 的那個水準。你們預期進入 5 月、6 月會更高嗎？

Yeah. Typically, you would expect blends to continue to improve as we head into our peak leasing season. And so on average, you would say -- we would anticipate blends to peak, say, around June through July somewhere in that time period.

是的。通常你會預期，隨著我們進入租賃旺季，blends 會持續改善。因此平均而言，你會說——我們預期 blends 會在大約 6 月到 7 月之間的某個時間點達到高峰。

The question here is really the trajectory of that increase. And I do want to say that while we're performing well here, we are still in a soft demand environment generally across the US and with geopolitical uncertainty.

這裡真正的問題是增幅的軌跡。我也想說，雖然我們目前表現不錯，但整體而言，美國仍處於偏疲弱的需求環境，而且地緣政治不確定性仍在。

So how much our blend is going to increase, we'll have some of that impact. And one of the reasons why we didn't raise our same-store revenues, we're very comfortable with where we're at. And in fact, our same-store, if it performed consistent with what we had anticipated when we released our guidance just based on the first-quarter results, same-store revenues will be about 15 basis higher.

所以我們的 blend 會增加多少，會受到其中一些因素影響。而我們沒有上調同店營收（same-store revenues）的原因之一，是我們對目前的位置非常有信心。事實上，如果同店表現與我們在發布指引時、基於第一季結果所預期的一致，同店營收將大約高出 15 個基點。

Having said that, when we set our guidance last year, early February, we were in a war with -- or with a new country. So things are moving around, and there's a lot of noise out there in the broader economy.

話雖如此，當我們去年 2 月初設定指引時，我們正處於一場戰爭——或是與一個新的國家相關的戰事。因此情勢一直在變動，整體經濟中也有很多雜訊。

Okay. Great. That's helpful. That's all for me.

好的。很好。這很有幫助。我這邊就到這裡。

Wes Golladay, Baird.

Wes Golladay，Baird。

Hey. Good morning, everyone. Can you comment on what's going on in Alameda? It looks like it's having a little bit of an acceleration. Just curious if this is more of a concession burn-off or a pickup in demand.

嘿。各位早安。你們能評論一下 Alameda 發生了什麼嗎？看起來有點加速。想了解這比較像是讓利消退，還是需求回升？

Wes, it's a combination of a couple of things. One is that we do have concession burn off. We had talked about supply abating and starting the benefit this year. So concession in the first quarter of last year was almost two weeks and now it's half a week, which is terrific. And we're seeing both rental rates and financial occupancy improve.

Wes，這是幾個因素的組合。其一，我們確實看到讓利消退。我們之前談到供給正在緩解，並且今年開始帶來效益。所以去年第一季的讓利接近兩週，現在是半週，這非常好。我們也看到租金水準與財務入住率（financial occupancy）都在改善。

We're also seeing that there's, of course, the spillover effect that helps with San Francisco performing well. And so there's some demand driver as well. So both of those components are helping Oakland, which is playing out what we had expected.

我們也看到，當然，舊金山表現良好帶來的外溢效應。因此也有一些需求驅動因素。這兩個面向都在幫助奧克蘭（Oakland），而這正如我們所預期的那樣在發展。

Okay. Thank you for that. And then maybe just one on the financial modeling. Do you have a timing expectation for the preferred investments being redeemed for the second half?

好的。謝謝你的說明。接著再問一個關於財務模型：你們對下半年優先投資（preferred investments）被贖回的時間點有預期嗎？

They're expected to be redeemed in the second quarter. I think if you model mid-Q2 redemption, that will get you close on the guidance.

預期會在第二季贖回。我想如果你在模型中假設第二季中段贖回，會與指引相當接近。

Okay. Thank you for that.

好的。謝謝。

Michael Goldsmith, UBS.

Michael Goldsmith，瑞銀（UBS）。

This is Amy on with Michael. We were just wondering, what are you seeing in terms of residents moving in from outside of your MSAs? Has there been any change in either domestic or international immigration?

我是 Amy，和 Michael 一起。我們想了解，你們看到有多少住戶是從你們的 MSA 之外搬入？國內或國際移民方面有任何變化嗎？

Hi, Amy. This is Barb. Yeah, on the immigration front, what we're seeing is domestic immigration within the Bay Area has continued to improve, and it is above pre-COVID levels. And I think that's a function of the demand for tech jobs and tech workers.

嗨，Amy。我是 Barb。是的，在移民方面，我們看到灣區內部的國內移入（domestic immigration）持續改善，而且已高於 COVID 之前的水準。我認為這與科技工作與科技人才的需求有關。

In terms of international immigration on the legal side, you haven't seen any material change on H-1B visas or anything like that. We know that the H-1B visas for 2027, they've already hit the cap. And so those will all get filled.

就合法的國際移民而言，你沒有看到 H-1B 簽證或類似項目有任何重大變化。我們知道 2027 年的 H-1B 簽證名額已經達到上限，因此那些名額都會被填滿。

So overall, it's been a slight benefit on the immigration side to our markets, specifically in the Bay Area and no material change from what we've said in the past.

所以整體而言，移民面對我們的市場是小幅利多，特別是在灣區；與我們過去所說的相比，沒有任何重大變化。

Great. Thank you. And just a follow-up on some of the questions about the structured finance opportunities. How has competition trended for these deals? And for the deals that you guys look at and underwrite, how far off are you from getting these deals and being selected better?

很好，謝謝。再追問一題，關於結構性融資（structured finance）的機會：這類交易的競爭態勢如何變化？以及對於你們評估並承作（underwrite）的案子，你們距離拿下交易、被選中的差距大概有多遠？

Hi, Amy. A good question. As we've said for the past couple of years, there was a significant amount of capital raised in the past several years to invest in this structure. So there has been more competition. We have seen yields compress, and somewhat opaic in terms of like where on specific deals we might miss out. But we're just trying to be diligent and stick to our process.

嗨，Amy。好問題。正如我們過去幾年所說，過去幾年有大量資金募集起來要投資這種結構，因此競爭更激烈。我們看到殖利率被壓縮，而且在某些交易上我們為何會錯失，某種程度上也比較不透明。但我們只是努力保持審慎並堅持我們的流程。

So we still feel it's a relationship business. If you start to see development pick up, that will create some more opportunities for us. We have a long history in this business. We're viewed as a good partner on the preferred side.

所以我們仍然認為這是一門關係型的生意。如果你開始看到開發活動回升，會為我們創造更多機會。我們在這個業務上有很長的歷史，在優先權（preferred）這一端也被視為很好的合作夥伴。

So we're going to continue to see opportunities, but we're just trying to stay disciplined as it relates to our underwriting process and not chase the market as some covenants get weaker and or yields compressed. We're going to stay disciplined to our return rate requirements.

因此我們會持續看到機會，但我們會在承作流程上保持紀律，不會在某些契約條款（covenants）變弱和／或殖利率被壓縮時去追逐市場。我們會堅守我們對報酬率的要求。

Yeah, Amy, it's Angela here. Ultimately, there's been a lot of volatility to our earnings because of the preferred book overhang and the size of the preferred book. And I, for one, and poor Barb here has had to deal with the direct impact, and we are quite relieved that this last year of that volatility.

是的，Amy，我是 Angela。歸根結底，由於優先權投資組合（preferred book）的懸而未決（overhang）以及其規模，我們的獲利一直有很大的波動。我個人——還有可憐的 Barb——都必須面對其直接影響，而我們對於這是最後一年出現那種波動感到相當鬆一口氣。

And so going forward, what we have been is much more selective. And in an effort to maintain a size that's going to be accretive to the portfolio in our business but not create so much noise that it becomes a distraction to our business.

因此往後，我們會更有選擇性。並且為了維持一個規模：既能對我們的投資組合與業務帶來增益（accretive），但又不會製造太多雜訊，以致分散我們對本業的注意力。

Actually, it makes sense. Thank you.

確實有道理。謝謝。

John Pawlowski, Green Street.

John Pawlowski，Green Street。

Thanks. On the capital allocation front, assuming your cost of capital stays in a similar ZIP code as it is today. What -- what rough range of disposition volumes do we expect this year and then the most likely use of those funds?

謝謝。在資本配置方面，假設你們的資金成本維持在與今天差不多的區間。今年我們大概會預期多少處分（disposition）量？以及這些資金最可能的用途是什麼？

Hey, John. Rylan here. As Angela mentioned, our capital allocation strategy doesn't change. We're really trying to maximize FFO and NAV per share accretion and improve the growth pile of the company. We have several assets that are currently on the market. So we will probably do several dispositions this year, and those proceeds will be allocated to whatever is the highest risk-adjusted return at the time of that.

嗨，John。我是 Rylan。如 Angela 所提到，我們的資本配置策略不變。我們主要是希望最大化每股 FFO 與每股 NAV 的增益（accretion），並提升公司成長資產的儲備。我們目前有幾個資產正在市場上，因此今年可能會進行數筆處分，而這些處分所得將配置到當時風險調整後報酬最高的用途上。

So we have the ability, as we talked about the health of the transaction market, which I think you're aware of, we have the ability to ramp that up and down as we see fit. And again, the strategy has not changed, and we'll continue to do as we have for many, many years.

所以我們具備彈性——正如我們談到交易市場的健康狀況，我想你也了解——我們可以視情況上調或下調處分節奏。同樣地，策略沒有改變，我們會像過去很多很多年一樣持續執行。

Okay. But today, given the health of the private market pricing, is it fair to assume that currently the best use of the funds is share repurchases on your guys' math?

好的。但今天，考量到私募市場定價的健康狀況，是否可以合理假設，依照你們的計算，目前資金的最佳用途是回購股票？

I don't think so, John. Once again, it depends on what the opportunity is available at the time. And so I'll point back to the transactions that we completed. Over 60% of it was off market. And so we certainly have incredible network and extensive relationships and a reputation that gives us an advantage.

John，我不這麼認為。再說一次，這取決於當時有哪些可用的機會。所以我會回到我們已完成的交易來看，其中超過 60% 是在場外完成的。因此，我們確實擁有非常強大的網絡、廣泛的人脈關係，以及能帶來優勢的聲譽。

And the stock price is going to change every day. And so to pinpoint what we're going to do based on today's stock price is probably not something you want us to do.

而股價每天都會變動。因此，根據今天的股價來精準決定我們要做什麼，可能不是你希望我們採取的做法。

John, I would add on that when I look at our menu of investment opportunities today, we've got several development land sites that we're quite excited about. We think these are going to be very attractive risk-adjusted returns as well as our redevelopment opportunities, particularly ADUs.

John，我補充一下，當我看我們目前的投資機會清單時，我們有幾個我們非常興奮的開發用地案場。我們認為，這些將帶來非常具吸引力的風險調整後報酬，另外還有我們的再開發機會，特別是 ADU。

This is a business that we've been ramping up for -- we're getting 10% return on cost. The per unit costs are a fraction of of in-place value. So those are two areas that we're going to continue to invest in because the returns, in many cases, exceed the highest risk-adjusted returns.

這是一項我們一直在加速推進的業務——我們的成本報酬率達到 10%。單位成本僅為現有價值的一小部分。所以這兩個領域我們會持續投資，因為在許多情況下，其報酬超過最高的風險調整後報酬。

Okay. Last one for me. Barb, can you talk a little bit about the insurance market, the property insurance market? I think you're expecting maybe a 5% decline on your insurance and other expenses this year. Curious if the market is healing faster and more dramatically than you thought? Or if that's still a fair bogey?

好的。我最後一題。Barb，你能談談保險市場、也就是財產保險市場嗎？我記得你們預期今年保險及其他費用可能下降約 5%。我好奇市場是否比你想的更快、且更明顯地修復？還是這仍是合理的目標值？

Yeah, John, we actually went to the insurance market and did our renewal for property in December. And so we did see a healthy reduction in our property insurance. And so I do think that market has held up from what we're hearing even today. I know we're, I think, four months past or five months past the renewal. It sounds like on the commercial side, that is the case.

是的，John，我們其實在 12 月就到保險市場做了財產保險的續保。因此，我們確實看到財產保險費有相當健康的下降。從我們即使到今天聽到的情況來看，我確實認為市場仍維持得不錯。我想我們距離續保已經四個月或五個月了。聽起來在商業端確實是這樣。

I think if you're talking residential, it's a much more challenging market, but we have seen the reinsurers come back in and the insurance premiums have come down from where they were over the last couple of years.

我認為如果你談的是住宅端，那是更具挑戰的市場，但我們確實看到再保險公司回來了，而保險費率也從過去幾年的水準回落。

Okay. Thanks for the time.

好的。謝謝你撥冗。

Omotayo Okusanya, Deutsche Bank.

Omotayo Okusanya，德意志銀行。

(Operator Instructions) Alex Kim, Zelman & Associates.

（接線員指示）Alex Kim，Zelman & Associates。

Hi. Thanks for taking my question. I wanted to circle back quickly to Los Angeles and the extent to which the fiction processing timeline impacts the pace of improvement. Have those eviction processing timelines improved at all in the first quarter? And when do you anticipate that the supply reduction in 2026 shows up in meaningful pricing power improvement. Thanks.

嗨，謝謝讓我提問。我想快速回到洛杉磯，以及驅逐處理時程在多大程度上影響改善速度。第一季驅逐處理時程有任何改善嗎？另外，你預期 2026 年供給減少何時會在定價能力的改善上有明顯體現？謝謝。

Yeah. That's a great question on L.A. So delinquency processing or the core processing time has improved over time. It's -- as far as just from fourth quarter to first quarter, it's pretty sticky. It's around four months, but this is a huge improvement from one and two long ago when it was six months and thereafter. And so what we would want to see is for that to improve it closer to three months, that's closer to our long-term average. And that will definitely help on the delinquency front.

是的。關於洛杉磯這是個很好的問題。所以欠租處理或核心處理時間，隨時間推移確實有所改善。就從第四季到第一季而言，它相當黏著，約在四個月左右，但相較很久以前第一、第二階段時是六個月甚至更久，這已是很大的改善。因此，我們希望它能進一步改善到接近三個月，這更接近我們的長期平均。這肯定會在欠租面向有所幫助。

As far as pricing power is concerned, we would want that economic occupancy to be at about 95% or better. We are very close right now. We were above 94% in the fourth quarter. And we're still above 94% in the first quarter, although it's a little bit lower than the fourth quarter. But pricing power is -- will be available to us once we hit 95, and we're feeling good that we're close to it.

至於定價能力，我們希望經濟入住率大約在 95% 或更高。我們現在非常接近。第四季我們在 94% 以上，第一季仍在 94% 以上，雖然比第四季略低一些。但一旦我們達到 95%，定價能力就會對我們開啟，而我們對於接近這個水準感覺良好。

Got it. So just taking a bit longer than occupancy returns. That's all for me. Thank you.

了解。所以只是比入住率回升花更久一點。我的問題就到這裡。謝謝。

Yeah, it's taken longer. But then again, we didn't expect this to happen quickly. We had thought it was going to take multiple years.

是的，確實花得更久。但話說回來，我們也不預期會很快發生。我們原本就認為需要好幾年。

Rich Anderson, Cantor Fitzgerald.

Rich Anderson，Cantor Fitzgerald。

Hey. Thanks for holding the fort down for me. So Angela, when I was just reading the transcript from last quarter, and you were talking about Los Angeles and you describe it as just so close to the magic 95% economic occupancy where things perhaps get a little bit better for you.

嘿，謝謝你幫我守住陣地。所以 Angela，我剛在讀上一季的逐字稿，你當時談到洛杉磯，並形容它距離那個神奇的 95% 經濟入住率非常接近，一旦達到，情況可能會對你們稍微好轉。

I know you described SoCal in general is in line, perhaps L.A. in line with your expectations, but deepen your heart, were you expecting more this quarter from L.A. that you didn't get? I'm just curious, and I have a follow-up to that.

我知道你描述整體 SoCal 大致符合預期，或許洛杉磯也符合你們的預期，但你內心深處，這一季是否原本期待洛杉磯能更好一些、但沒有出現？我只是好奇，後面我還有一個追問。

Hey, Rich. Always happy to hold out for you. Deep in my heart, I always hope for better numbers. And I think anybody who works with me knows that we push pretty down here. Having said that, the expectations are such. And sometimes things do better. Northern California expected -- exceed expectations and sometimes they meet expectations.

嗨，Rich。很高興一直等你。內心深處，我總是希望數字更好。我想任何跟我共事的人都知道，我們在這裡推得很用力。話雖如此，預期就是那樣。有時候表現會更好。北加州有時會超出預期，有時則符合預期。

And with L.A., I think we have always said that it was going to take a little bit longer and occupancy, once again, it's so close. So even though we didn't see significant occupancy improvement from quarter to quarter, which we didn't expect, 70 basis points improvement blends, that's not bad. I'll take it.

至於洛杉磯，我想我們一直都說它會需要更長一點時間，而入住率再次強調，已經非常接近了。所以即使我們沒有看到季度對季度的顯著入住率改善——而這也在我們預期之內——入住率提升 70 個基點的綜合表現也不差。我接受。

Okay. And then on the Camden process, I don't think you're a buyer, but is there anything about it that's informing you strategically around the area, whether it's L.A., Orange County, San Diego, and Inland Empire that they're looking to sell that capping the reception that they're getting, which sounds like it's been pretty substantial. Does it inform you about what you might do as corollary to the process they're undertaking, whether it's as a buyer or a seller or anything?

好的。那再談 Camden 的流程，我不認為你們是買方，但這件事是否在策略上給你們一些啟發，關於他們在洛杉磯、橘郡、聖地牙哥與內陸帝國等地區想出售的資產，以及他們收到的反應（聽起來相當熱烈）所反映的資本化率/市場接受度？這是否會影響你們在他們進行的流程中，作為對應的行動，不論是作為買方、賣方或其他？

Yeah, Rich. That's a good question. As far as Southern California is concerned, it's a -- it's part of our stable -- or it's a stable part of our portfolio. We have about 40% in SoCal, a little bit more in NorCal, may be 45%-ish. And that allocation makes sense to us. We're in Southern California because of mirrors the US and with more professional services and lower supply as a whole.

是的，Rich。這是個好問題。就南加州而言，它是我們投資組合中穩定的一部分。我們約有 40% 在 SoCal，北加州略多一些，可能約 45% 左右。這樣的配置對我們來說是合理的。我們在南加州，因為那裡更像美國整體結構，專業服務業占比更高，且整體供給較低。

And so other companies are going to make capital allocations differently than us. And I will say that Camden is a good company. It's run by smart people. but dynamics are different, right? Because having a handful of portfolios in a huge region, it's very tough to be efficient.

因此，其他公司會以不同於我們的方式做資本配置。我也要說，Camden 是一家好公司，由聰明的人經營。但市場動態不同，對吧？因為在一個非常大的區域只持有少數幾個資產組合，要做到高效率是很困難的。

Versus for us, 70% our portfolio -- or of our properties are within 3 to 5 miles for each other. We can run it incredibly efficiently. And so it's just very different reasons why people make portfolio allocation decisions.

相較之下，對我們而言，我們投資組合中 70%——或我們的物業——彼此距離在 3 到 5 英里內。我們可以非常高效率地營運。因此，人們做投資組合配置決策的原因非常不同。

Okay. Fair enough. Thank you.

好的。合理。謝謝。

This now concludes our question-and-answer session. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your participation. This does conclude today's teleconference. Please disconnect your lines, and have a wonderful day.

現在問答環節結束。各位女士、先生，感謝您的參與。今天的電話會議到此結束。請掛斷您的線路，祝您有美好的一天。