This post will dive into a topic that’s been on a lot of minds recently—rising rent prices. It’s easy to point fingers and blame landlords for being greedy, but the reality is far more complex. Rents have been increasing for several reasons, many of which are beyond the control of landlords. In this article, we’ll explore the key factors driving up rent costs, from higher housing expenses to government regulations, and how these factors impact both the rental market and the overall housing market.
Video: Why Are Rents So High?
The Root Causes of Rising Rent
One of the primary reasons rent prices are increasing is the rising cost of housing. This isn’t just about the sticker price of homes; it’s about everything that goes into owning and maintaining a property.
Since COVID-19, we’ve seen significant increases in various costs, including:
Construction Costs: Labor and materials have become much more expensive. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, construction wages have steadily increased, with a sharp uptick since 2020. This impacts the cost of building new properties and maintaining existing ones.
Insurance Costs: Property and casualty insurance premiums have skyrocketed, particularly in the last two years. The Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) shows that premiums for homeowners’ insurance have more than doubled in the past 20 years, with the most significant increases occurring recently. This is partly due to stricter building codes and higher risk factors, such as hurricanes in states like Florida.
Property Taxes: In many areas, property taxes have risen dramatically. In Colorado, for example, we’ve seen the largest increase in property taxes in decades. The state has adjusted property valuations closer to or even above market value, leading to significant tax hikes. For instance, one of my commercial properties saw its value jump from $125,000 in 2018 to $352,000 in 2024, causing property taxes to increase from $3,220 to $7,717 annually.
Rental Property Cash Flow Calculator
How These Costs Affect Rent Prices
As these costs increase, so do the expenses for landlords. When insurance premiums, property taxes, and maintenance costs rise, landlords have two options: raise rents to cover these costs or sell the property. If they choose to sell, it reduces the supply of rental properties, which in turn drives up rents further.
One common misconception is that landlords are just raising rents out of greed. The truth is, many of us would prefer not to raise rents, as it can reduce our pool of potential tenants.
However, if the costs of owning and maintaining a property increase, raising rents becomes a necessity to ensure that the investment remains viable.
The Impact of Tenant Behavior and Laws
Another factor contributing to rising rents is tenant behavior. Over the years, we’ve noticed an increase in tenants not respecting properties. When tenants leave properties in poor condition, it adds to the maintenance costs. This isn’t the only factor, but it’s a significant one.
Additionally, changes in tenant laws have made it more challenging for landlords to manage their properties. In states like California, Washington, and New York—where tenant laws are particularly strict—rents are among the highest in the country. These laws often make it harder to evict problematic tenants or require landlords to pay relocation costs if they need a tenant to move out. All of these regulations add to the cost of being a landlord, which ultimately gets passed on to tenants in the form of higher rents.
Tenant Screening Best Practices for Rental Properties
The Role of Government Regulations
Government regulations play a significant role in the rising cost of housing. Stricter building codes, such as those related to climate change, have added thousands of dollars to the cost of constructing new homes. The National Association of Home Builders estimated that new climate change building codes could add $31,000 to the price of a new home. These increased costs make new housing more expensive, which in turn drives up rent prices.
Moreover, rent control laws, intended to protect tenants, often have the opposite effect.
Studies, including one from Harvard University on rent control in San Francisco, have shown that these laws can reduce the supply of rental properties as landlords are disincentivized from renting out properties or from investing in new ones. This reduced supply leads to higher rents for the properties that are available.
Does Rent Control Lower or Raise Rents?
The Bigger Picture: Supply and Demand
The supply and demand dynamics in the housing market also play a crucial role in rent prices. Contrary to popular belief, investors are not buying up all the available homes and driving up prices.
In fact, data from the American Community Survey shows that since 2016, the number of renter-occupied single-family homes has decreased by over a million, while owner-occupied homes have increased significantly. This shift has reduced the supply of rental properties, contributing to higher rents.
Conclusion: It’s Not Just About Greed
The rise in rent prices is not simply a result of landlord greed. It’s a complex issue driven by increasing costs in housing, stricter government regulations, and shifts in the housing market. As landlords, we must adapt to these changes, which sometimes means raising rents to keep up with rising expenses. While it’s easy to blame landlords for higher rents, the reality is that these increases are often a reflection of broader economic and regulatory trends.
If we want to address the issue of rising rents, we need to look at the bigger picture and consider how policies, regulations, and economic factors contribute to the costs of housing. Only by addressing these underlying issues can we hope to create a more affordable and sustainable rental market.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments below!
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If you let Elon Musk tell it, he’s a free speech absolutist who cannot be threatened with money or forced to submit to anyone’s whims. If you look at concrete actions, you’d see that Twitter has been far more acquiescent to government takedown requests. A counterpoint could be that he stood on principle and refused to appoint a legal representative to Brazil and pay a ~$5 million dollar fine even if it meant losing ~20M potential customers. Well, Twitter is currently in a position to recoup that audience, and you’ll never guess what happened. BBC has coverage:
Brazil’s Supreme Court has said it is lifting a ban on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
In his decision, Justice Alexandre de Moraes said that he authorised the “immediate return” of X’s activities in the country after it paid hefty fines and blocked accounts accused of spreading misinformation.
According to a statement, the site has paid fines totalling 28 million reais ($5.1m; £3.8m) and agreed to appoint a local representative, as required by Brazilian law.
All that grandstanding just to cave to the judge’s (quite reasonable) demands? He should have skipped the foreplay and just did what the court demanded last month! Since then, millions of Brazilians have migrated to other social media platforms like Threads and Bluesky. Will they abandon the internet community they’ve built up over the month to go back to the bird app? Only time will tell.
For those who do return, Welcome back to Twitter, Brazil! You have a lot of catching up to do!
Brazil Lifts Ban On Musk’s X After It Pays $5m Fine [BBC]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
For more of the latest in litigation, regulation, deals and financial services trends, sign up for Finance Docket, a partnership between Breaking Media publications Above the Law and Dealbreaker.
It is never easy to keep healthcare facilities fully staffed with highly qualified medical professionals. Using a company that specializes in vetting and providing advanced practitioners can be very helpful. Having someone else take care of verifying licenses and credentials and take care of background checks can save the medical facility time and money.
What are Advanced Practitioners in Medicine?
Advanced practitioners are registered nurses who have additional training in the form of master’s degrees or doctorate degrees in nursing. and a specific specialty such as anesthesia, midwives, nurse specialists, or certified nurse practitioners. These advanced practitioners are very valuable in healthcare settings. Healthcare facilities can get qualified help for advanced practice staffing. These staffing providers can be relied on to connect the facility with qualified candidates for advanced practitioner openings.
An advanced practice provider can be a nurse practitioner or a physician assistant who works in collaboration with physicians to give patients a high level of education and clinical care. The role of the advanced practice provider was created in the 1960s to provide better care for patients and mitigate the shortages of physicians. This medical specialty has grown in importance in the last decades.
What Role Do Advanced Practice Nurses Fill in Medicine?
Advanced practice nurses fill the role of preventing diseases, promoting health, and providing quality patient care. These APRNS can conduct screenings, give immunizations, provide health counseling services, educate patients about healthy lifestyle choices, and work with healthcare professionals to provide patients with complete health care.
APRNs screen patients for health problems such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and communicable diseases such as influenza measles, and COVID. These screenings can lead to earlier, more successful treatment and the prevention of the spread of diseases. These nurses can inform patients about immunizations along with their risks and benefits.
Advanced Practice nurses can educate patients about proper nutrition, regular physical activity, weight control, sun protection, safe sex practices, and substance abuse. Advanced practice nurses work with physicians and other health professionals to give patients comprehensive care.
An Advanced Practice Nurse has advanced their career with additional training so they have skills beyond general nursing. Advanced practice nurses can admit patients to hospitals and prescribe medications. They can request various kinds of medical tests and interpret the results.
Another important role advanced practice nurses can fill is providing healthcare to rural and other underserved communities. These areas often have trouble attracting physicians due to location and limited funds. In these areas, advanced practice nurses can serve as the primary care providers. They will offer comprehensive healthcare where it might not be available otherwise.
Advanced practice nurses also help patients navigate the healthcare system which can be complicated and challenging. They can help patients understand and adhere to healthcare plans. Advanced practice nurses can also help patients understand their insurance plans and know what is covered and what is not covered. They can handle pre-authorization requirements for insurance coverage of some services.
See: Fintech for Healthcare Explained
Advanced practice nurses can also refer patients to different specialists and explain what the referred doctor specializes in and how they can help the patient. The advanced practice nurse offers many essential services to clinics, hospitals, and other medical facilities. They have received additional training and experience to advance their careers and the services they can offer.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada’s Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
This Alpha Picks Review explores if this investing group lives up to the hype by outperforming the S&P 500 by nearly 2.7x as of October 2024.
Quick Summary:
Alpha Picks is a Seeking Alpha investing group run by a former hedge fund manager who is now a portfolio manager analyst at Seeking Alpha.
Every month, subscribers receive 2 new stock picks backed by the analysts’ research. Since 2022, Alpha Picks has returned 140%, vs. 50%, outperforming the S&P 500 by over 2.7X as of October 2024.
Best For:
Buy and hold investors
Capital appreciation-oriented investors
PROS
Outperformed S&P 500 2.7X
Reasonably Priced
Community engagement
CONS
Requires familiarity with the Alpha Rating system
Requires some investing knowledge
Features:
2 new stock picks per month
Exclusive investing articles
Nearly real-time trade alerts
Mobile App?
Yes, through the Seeking Alpha App
Current Promotions:
Save $50 off your first year
What is Alpha Picks?
Alpha Picks is Seeking Alpha’s in-house investing group.
Alpha Picks is a stand-alone investing group that is part of Seeking Alpha’s “Investing Groups.”
As I noted in my Seeking Alpha Review, Seeking Alpha hosts several contributor-based investing groups, but this investing group is run by investing professionals hired by Seeking Alpha.
Alpha Picks subscribers get 2 monthly stock picks selected by their in-house investment team run by Steven Cress, a former Hedge Fund Manager and senior trader at investment banking powerhouse Morgan Stanley.
Every month, Steve provides an overview of the portfolio via webinar and the portfolio’s holdings.
So far, the portfolio’s performance has been stellar— since inception returning approximately 140% vs. 50% for the S&P 500 as of October 2024.
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Alpha Picks Returns
Since its inception in 2022, Alpha Picks returned 140% vs. 50% for the S&P 500 over the same period. While Alpha Picks returns are good for the year, a 2.5-year time horizon barely scratches the surface for an investor.
Like most portfolios nowadays, it does hold some popular tech stocks like Meta, Google, and SalesForce, but honestly, I’ve never heard of most of the companies in the portfolio.
The portfolio consists of approximately 30 stocks, with individual stock weightings between 2-4% of the total holdings, with a few outliers.
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Every month, Steve and his team provide a webinar update to discuss portfolio holdings and market updates like macro themes like inflation and interest rates. I’ve watched the webinars – they are about 30 minutes long, and Steve robotically reads off a prompter.
Not all returns are created equal – let’s dig into the data:
Approximately 24% of the holdings are in the Industrial sector, followed by 19% in Energy, 17% in Information Technology, and 16% in Consumer Discretionary.
Most of the portfolio’s returns are driven by one stock, Super Micro Computer, Inc., which has returned over 234% since its purchase and constitutes nearly 9% of its holdings.
I checked my Morningstar account and saw that Super Micro Computer has a beta of 1.28, meaning the stock is 28% more sensitive than the overall stock market, so it’s logical that the stock has generated solid performance over the past year.
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Portfolio Holdings At A Glance
Number of Holdings: 30 Weightings: Individual stocks between 2 – 4% of total holdings Top 3 Holdings: Super Micro Computer Inc, M/I Homes, Modine Manufacturing Top 3 Sectors: Industrial, Energy, Information Technology Weighted Average Portfolio Beta: 1.06
Investment Process
Below I explore Alpha Pick’s buying and selling criteria and how they perform their investment analysis.
Buying Criteria
Alpha Picks uses a data-driven process to identify the most appropriate stock picks from Seeking Alpha Premium’s quant recommendations.
The team selects two ‘Strong Buy’ rated stocks per month. One pick is added on the first trading day of the month, and the other is added on the 15th of the month or the next trading day.
Each “Buy” must meet the following criteria:
‘Strong Buy’ quant rating for at least 75 consecutive days
A U.S. Common Stock (i.e. No ADRs)
Not a REIT
Has a 3-month average market capitalization greater than $500M
Stock price greater than $10
Has not been recommended in the past 1 year
In addition to the above criteria, the team seeks stocks that have a combination of:
Value: Stocks that are considered undervalued compared to their intrinsic worth. These stocks trade for less than their actual or estimated earnings, dividends, sales, etc. Value investors look for bargains, believing the market has undervalued these stocks.
Growth: Stocks with high potential for future revenue and earnings increases. These companies are expected to grow at an above-average rate compared to other stocks in the market. Growth investing involves more risk but also has the potential for higher returns.
Profitability: Profitable companies are generally considered more stable and less risky to invest in. Metrics like return on equity (ROE), net margin, and earnings per share (EPS) are commonly used to measure profitability.
Momentum: Refers to the tendency of a stock to continue moving in the direction of its current trend. Momentum investors capitalize on existing trends, buying stocks that are going up and selling those that are going down.
Revised Forward-Looking Earnings Estimates: This term is a mouthful but super important. It means analysts have updated their earnings predictions for a company’s future. If estimates are revised upward, it’s often a bullish sign, indicating expected growth. On the flip side, downward revisions could signal trouble ahead.
So what the above tells me is that the team applies a combination of quantitative and fundamental analysis to identify investment opportunities.
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Investment Thesis
Steve and his team then form an investment thesis for new recommendations using the above criteria.
As a subscriber, I could visit Alpha Pick’s homepage and find the investment thesis posted chronologically.
The investment thesis covers basics like an overview of the company, macro trends the company may benefit from, and an explanation of its business model.
Further down in the article, the team describes its buy thesis, explaining its rationale for the stock factor grades.
One cool differentiator I see is an analyst named Zackary replies to subscribers’ questions in the comment box, creating an engaging dialogue.
Selling Criteria
Subscribers are notified via email when the team closes out or reduces a position in the portfolio.
When a stock no longer scores well on fundamentals, valuation, and momentum relative to its sector, or if a stock is rated as ‘Hold’ for more than 180 days, it becomes a ‘Sell’ and is removed from the portfolio.
Alpha Picks sells the entire position in a stock if any of the following occur:
The rating falls to “Sell” or “Strong Sell.”
The company announces an M&A event in which it is the target, or it announces a merger of equals.
The rating falls to “Hold” and remains a “Hold” for 180 consecutive days (as long as the stock is not a ‘winner’ – see below).
Alpha Picks’s “quant research” shows that their portfolio performs better when they let their winners “run.”
A stock is a ‘winner’ when it doubles from the price at which it was purchased. For ‘winners’, if the rating on the stock falls to ‘Hold’ and remains there for 180 consecutive days, the team will only sell the initial investment in the stock. They will keep the remainder of the position in the portfolio.
They only eliminate ‘winners’ if:
Rating falls to “Sell” or “Strong Sell”
Company announces an M&A event in which it is the target
The company announces a merger of equals
Alpha Picks Team
The Alpha Picks team is small. It’s run by stock picker Steven Cress and a junior analyst, Zachary Marx.
Steven Cress
Steven Cress, a former hedge fund manager and senior quantitative trader at Morgan Stanley, makes stock picks.
According to his LinkedIn, it looks like Seeking Alpha purchased the company he founded, and that’s how he became associated with Seeking Alpha.
Zachary Marx, CFA
The Junior, who appears to be the only analyst on the team, is Zachary Marx. According to his LinkedIn, he has about 6 years of quantitative investing experience.
Best For
Alpha Pick’s buy and buy-and-hold approach to investing makes this stock-picking service ideal for long-term investors and those seeking long-term capital appreciation.
Buy and hold investors.
Investors seeking capital appreciation.
Given its broad market exposure, Alpha Picks is not ideal for income-oriented investors, day traders, or single-sector investors.
PROs and CONs Explained
Let’s explore the PROs and CONs of Alpha Picks a little more deeply.
PROs:
Investment Team with Legit Pedigree: Senior Portfolio analyst Steve Cress has serious experience. He founded his own hedge fund and spent many years as a Senior trader at Morgan Stanley.
Market Outperformance: The portfolio has outperformed the market 2.7X since inception. I calculated a weighted average beta of just 1.06, making its performance even more intriguing.
CONs
Limited Track Record: Alpha Picks has only been around Since July 2022, so while their success is impressive, what really matters is providing investors with year-over-year returns.
Requires familiarity with Rating Factors: Alpha Picks assumes you know the company’s rating factors and methodology, so if you aren’t, you’ll need to do some research after signing up.
Price and Value
Alpha Picks is $449 for the first year ($50 savings) off of the full price of $499.
For $449/year you get access to:
2 new stock picks per month/24 picks per year
Monthly Portfolio Review Videos
Complete Investment Thesis for Stock Picks
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Best Alternatives
If you don’t fancy Alpha Picks by Seeking Alpha, don’t fret. There are several excellent alternatives.
1. Motley Fool Stock Advisor
Why it Stands Out: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor shines with its specific stock recommendations, backed by detailed analysis and a strong track record of performance. This valuable feature aids investors of all levels to identify potential investment opportunities in the stock market. While Alpha Picks has had tremendous success, Motley Fool Stock Advisor has been around for many years, making spectacular bets on the largest tech stocks.
Returns: +462% since inception
Best For: Both novice and experienced investors who appreciate guidance on stock picks and investment strategies
Pros: Provides specific stock recommendations, offers in-depth reports, and a solid track record of performance.
Cons: Requires a subscription; not all recommended stocks may suit every investor.
Price: $79/year
Check Out Motley Fool
or read our complete Motley Fool Review.
2. CNBC Investing Club
Why it Stands Out: The CNBC Investing Club is a subscription-based investing service that provides stock picks, portfolio analysis, and market analysis. Jim Cramer created the Investing Club to help all investors build long-term wealth in the stock market. The CNBC Investing Club is now the official home of Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust.
Returns: 21.9% between 2019 – 2023
Best For: Active traders, Momentum-oriented traders
Pros: real-time investment advice, monthly meetings with Jim Cramer, community engagement
Cons: Some duplicate content found on CNBC, Price
Price: Starts at $49.99/mo
Current Promotions: None listed
or read our complete CNBC Investing Club Review.
Is Alpha Picks Worth it?
Alpha Pick’s impressive performance over the past year certainly presents a tempting opportunity for many investors.
However, considering the group has only been in action for a little over a year, I would tread cautiously if you think you will strike it rich with this investing group.
I am more of an index fund type of guy, so I even felt a little strange when I signed up for Alpha Picks, but I thought it could help expand my view.
For $40 a month, you’re not breaking the bank for a subscription; at worst, you’ll hopefully learn something new about investing.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the Difference Between Seeking Alpha Premium and Picks?
Alpha Picks is an investing group. If you sign up just for the investing group, you don’t have access to all other contributor-based articles. Meanwhile, if you have a Seeking Alpha Premium subscription, you have access to all articles and tools but not the investing group.
If you sign up for a Seeking Alpha Pro subscription, you have access to the Alpha Picks Investing Group and all the articles and tools Seeking Alpha has to offer.
Our Review Methodology
Investing in the right financial products is crucial for achieving your financial goals. That’s why our review methodology is designed to give you a comprehensive understanding of various investing platforms and tools. Here’s a breakdown of what we focus on:
Tools and Features
We dig deep into the suite of tools that each platform offers. Whether it’s automated investment features, tax optimization, or specialized charting tools, we evaluate how these features contribute to smarter investing decisions. We ask questions like:
What is its main offering, and how does it compare to its peers?
How effective are the risk assessment tools?
Are there any value-added services like educational content?
Price and Value
Price matters, especially when it comes to investing, where every penny counts. We analyze:
Subscription fees
Hidden Charges
Price compared to the overall value received
We’ll let you know if the platform gives you the most bang for your buck.
Ease of Use
User experience can make or break an investment platform. We assess:
Interface Design – Is it intuitive and easy to use?
Mobile app availability and functionality
Customer Support – where applicable.
Nobody wants to navigate a clunky interface when dealing with their hard-earned money.
Stock Breakdown
Good investing is rooted in great research. We examine:
The quality of stock analysis tools
Returns on an absolute and comparative basis
Availability of real-time data
Depth of research reports
We check if the platform provides actionable insights to make informed decisions.
How We Do It
Hands-On Testing: I signed up for Alpha Picks to actually provide real insight. This is how I give a unique perspective. We’re unlike some other sites where they simply rehash marketing materials.
Customer Reviews: What are other users saying? We look at reviews and customer feedback to gauge public opinion.
Comparative Analysis: Finally, we compare each platform against competitors in terms of features, pricing, and user experience.
We take a comprehensive approach so that you don’t have to.
By sticking to this methodology, we aim to guide you toward investment tools that align with your financial objectives. Happy investing!
Why You Should Trust Us
Our reviews are unbiased and data-driven. While we may receive a commission if you purchase a product through our link, it does not impact our editorial integrity. In addition, all articles are independently reviewed by individuals with extensive experience in investing and personal finance. Lastly, for further validation, we often refer to authoritative financial sources like Morningstar, The Wall Street Journal, and Kiplingers, to name a few.
Rooftop solar panels destroyed
by the violent wind in Nantong, China 
Author: Sara Ver-Bruggen, Features Writer
Solar is the fastest-growing energy source in the world. Between 2013 and 2022, 46 percent of global renewable energy investments flowed into solar photovoltaics, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), which also highlighted that in 2022 solar PV accounted for 60 percent of this investment, around $300bn. But as extreme weather events increase in frequency, insurers and lenders want assurances that potential threats to productivity, performance and resilience of these assets are being addressed.
Towards the end of the last decade, a large loss for a utility-scale solar PV plant would typically be in the region of $100,000 to $200,000, perhaps as much as $1m. According to specialist renewables insurer GCube (owned by Tokio Marine HCC), which has underwritten over 20GW of solar capacity, claims due to damage from hailstorms to solar PV plants in the US now average around $58.4m per claim and account for 54.21 percent of incurred costs of total solar loss claims.
GCube director of operations and legal counsel, James Papazis, says: “The premiums for the solar plant’s construction phase as well as its operational phase have increased, along with increases in deductibles and imposed sub-limits and limits.”
Today $100m-plus losses from hail damage at solar sites in the US are not unusual with sub-limits at $50m–$60m. The loss is shared by multiple insurers and reinsurers. Even then the project is exposed with an uninsured loss for a substantial figure. “This had led to tension between financiers, lenders and insurers.
As a result, more due diligence and effort is occurring at the planning stage of projects, and insurance is also being discussed at a much earlier stage of the project’s development because lenders want to know about sub-limits, premiums and deductibles,” Papazis says. As solar PV projects have increased in size and are increasingly being sited in more remote locations, longer construction phases ensue. Supply chain bottlenecks and limited availability of components and equipment have also impacted projects so they are taking longer to build.
Construction risks “If project construction phases fall behind it can expose projects to additional risks because it may occur in wind, hail or tornado season and fully complete projects are more resilient to damage than incomplete ones,” says Papazis. According to Paul Raats, principal consultant, energy systems at risk management consultancy DNV, financiers and insurers are paying increasing attention to the risk that comes with climate change and extreme weather events. “In north-east Europe, it has led to additional risk analyses to ascertain a solar project’s viability with increased impacts in the instance of heavy rainfall and winds.”
DNV has advised IRENA on developing a set of recommendations to help the solar PV industry better manage extreme weather event-related risks regarding solar projects and assets. “More attention needs to be given to sudden harsh weather during construction as the PV systems are not at their full bearing capacity and are more vulnerable to heavy loads,” says Raats. Developers and their contractors are advised to schedule construction by considering short-term weather forecasts, a practice that is more usual in offshore wind.
$100m-plus losses from hail damage at solar sites in the US are not unusual
“In extremely wet or flood-prone regions risks can be better understood and mitigated during the development stage by carrying out detailed geotechnical, hydrological and flood risk assessments,” Raats continues. DNV also advises that assessment of 100-year flood probability should be part of these assessments and any recommendations should be considered in the project design. These can include ensuring increasing the height of mounting systems so the bottom edge of the solar PV module is above the highest historical water level, installing inverter cabinets off the ground, reinforcing foundations and adding draining systems or modifying existing drainage. Furthermore, insurance against damage should provide an additional layer of financial protection to the projects located in such regions. As well as advising that projects should have an owner’s engineer for oversight, inspectors during plant construction should be employed and contractors should have proper insurance in place, according to DNV.
Wind, rain, floods and landslides Solar developer and asset owner Lightsource bp intends to start construction works on a 100 megawatt (MW) project in Taiwan once financial close is reached in the next two to three months. The extent and frequency of extreme weather events on the island is increasing. Higher wind speeds, more rainfall as well as flooding and accompanying landslides have to be considered. Lightsource bp’s specific mitigations for its Budai solar project include technical requirements to ensure equipment is high enough – at least 1.1 metres – to account for potential subsidence/landslides, which are determined through historical trends as well as considerations like flash flood events. Double glass modules to reduce the chance of water ingress will also be used instead of those with polymer backsheets.
The developer has also involved reputable international parties with strong local experience like Fitchner, as owner’s engineer, and TÜV Rheinland, as lender’s technical adviser, to check its assumptions and design. In addition, project level insurance is in place to cover force majeure events.
Weather modelling The frequency, intensity and unpredictability of weather and its impact on solar farm yields, or productivity, as well as its potential for damaging solar assets, can be mitigated by weather monitoring and modelling.
US solar plant owners and developers are adopting approaches where they use ground weather monitoring stations – onsite sensors – at their project site for a minimum of a year. The gathered data can then be compared with high-resolution satellite data, sometimes going back 20–30 years, to produce bankable site-specific data. Solargis, which provides this kind of modelling service, counts solar PV project developers and independent power producers, as well as technical advisers and independent engineers on projects, while banks also use its data and services for their financing process.
Accurate historical temperature and irradiation values are crucial for analysing trends, predicting scenarios, and making informed decisions, says Giridaran Srinivasan, Solargis’ Americas CEO. “This allows for more accurate prediction of output, based not only on the best-case scenario but also for periods of extreme or non-typical scenarios. More and more, lenders in the solar PV sector are including rigorous due diligence procedures for project funding.” As part of this process, they require calculations and simulations that incorporate more extreme event models upfront to account for the worst-case scenario in terms of energy production. The aim is to provide an accurate representation of the solar PV project’s potential performance.
“The use of such models ensures that lenders have a comprehensive understanding of the risks involved in financing a given project so it is important for project managers and developers to incorporate these extreme models in their simulations to secure funding,” Srinivasan adds.
Technological adaptations More accurate modelling and better data is also helping the supply chain to respond to the challenge. Solar module tracking systems are becoming more mature and mainstream with built-in intelligence models, for example.
Kevin Christy, Head of Innovation & Operational Excellence, Americas, at Lightsource bp, says: “The US is experiencing severe hail events in Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, to name a few. A large hail stone can do a lot of damage if it hits a solar panel dead on. Our hail monitoring and mitigation system, Project Whiskyball, helps to mitigate damage.”
The trackers that the company uses in its projects tilt in order to maximise the incoming light from the sun. But when the risk of a hailstorm is detected, the trackers stow the modules in a more vertical position.“Any hail striking the modules will be reduced to a glancing blow rather than a direct hit. It is extremely effective at reducing the force applied by any hail and greatly reduces the potential for damage. Project Whiskyball is now operational across all of our completed solar assets in the US,” Christy adds.
Lenders in the solar PV sector are including rigorous due diligence procedures for project funding
Solar Defender Technologies has developed a protective net that covers modules mounted on single axis tracker systems, used in ground-mounted utility-scale installations, while allowing the modules to move to achieve optimum energy output. A combination of the increased costs of solar technology adaptation plus the tripling of insurance premiums in the last few years, is eroding the profitability of some solar plants. In some cases there may not be the coverage available to give the developer the comfort to build. Papazis says: “This is becoming a big issue for the industry. When lenders have to factor in increased premiums or uninsured hail losses, the economics of projects can change significantly. There isn’t really a clear answer yet.”
Where developers are building projects that they intend to operate and own for the majority of the operational lifetime, lenders are more comfortable with these sorts of companies to partner with. “This long-term approach does change the economics, making it attractive for those with large balance sheets and large portfolios,” adds Papazis. Portfolios with projects spread across different locations and regions mean that ones in a hail-prone part of a state or by the coast can be offset by others that are in areas where weather is less severe. The main problem with the weather has always been its unpredictability, and climate change isn’t helping.
“Wildfires are the latest issue for the industry. Generally, solar projects in some parts of the US are becoming more expensive to finance and insure due to mitigating against more weather events, not just natural catastrophe,” he says. The industry has options available to support mitigation and underwriting of risks, including paying more attention to site selection, equipment and technology choices and making better use of weather modelling, as well as looking at water tables and frequency of flooding events. “There are multiple factors so use of multiple different modelling tools, including satellite imagery, is important,” says Papazis.
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The team at Transcend Corporate recently put their gardening skills to the test again by spending the day at the Acorns Children’s Hospice in Selly Oak, Birmingham.
For the third year running, Transcend has taken time to volunteer for Acorns, a charity that provides care to children and young people with life-limiting conditions.
Kicking off a sunny Autumnal day, Dee McCann (Volunteers Manager) provided the team with an update on the activities of the centre since the last Transcend visit, which included a recent royal visit from Prince William, a BBQ for all of the families at the centre and a gardening event that showed off the fantastic work of all of the regular volunteers.
Dee also reminded us of the crucial role that the centre plays in the lives of many children who require extra care and have life-changing illnesses. The support that they provide to children and families alike is second-to-none, and the fact that the running of the organisation is carried out through the provision of volunteer time and private fundraising efforts is truly inspiring.
The unusually warm October sun spurred the Transcend team into action, with window cleaning and ridding the grounds of leaves high on the agenda. All of the team pitched in and by the end of the day the grounds were ready to provide much-needed respite for those who rely on Acorns.
Steve Bartlett, Partner at Transcend, commented, “It was great to be back at Acorns and we are delighted to support the amazing work that they do in our community.”
In 2017 alone, Acorns supported over 680 children and around 915 families, including those bereaved, across the West Midlands – a truly remarkable feat for an organisation that relies on the goodwill of the public.
Once again, the truly outstanding efforts and passion of the Acorns team were impressed upon the team. Volunteering at Acorns has certainly become a favourite fixture of the Transcend calendar.
We recently had an insightful discussion with Amit Doshi, Chief Marketing Officer, Britannia Industries Limited, on crafting purposeful experiences for consumers using AI-driven personalization. Amit is a marketing and sales leader with 20 + years of diverse business & capability building experience in key innovation, brand marketing, digital, sales, and customer development roles.
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In his previous assignment, he was Director, Marketing, and part of the Indian leadership and Asia-Pacific marketing leadership teams at Lenovo. He has worked with Perfetti Van Melle in the past. Amit Doshi has experience in Consumer (B2C), Enterprise, Small & Medium Business (SMB), and Tablet business units at Lenovo and brings a valuable understanding of consumers and markets across product categories.
The key takeaways from the discussion are given below:
Crafting Purposeful Experiences: The Power of AI-Driven Personalization
1. How do you view personalization as a marketer?
Why do marketers do marketing? It’s for either short-term sales growth or it’s got to build a strong brand. In that context, if a marketer believes that personalization will truly add value, then one must do that.
But it’s very important to be mindful of the fact that one is not doing personalization just because it’s the new and shiny thing to do. For decades altogether, we have seen many successful businesses and brands being built on the back of absolutely no personalization. They were built on a very deep connection that is needed in the consumer’s life and the products being able to solve the problem.
Hence, I don’t think customers by default are necessarily seeking personalization. However, if the brand or the business does believe that they’re able to solve the consumers’ problem better or elevate the experience with personalization, they should go for it.
If they decide to take that pathway, technology plays an extremely crucial role. It’s very difficult to do personalization at scale without the aid of sophisticated technology.
Takeaways
Don’t do personalization just for the sake of doing it. Do it when it is a part of your experience or what you’re trying to achieve ultimately from marketing.
The role that technology plays essentially as it provides scale. It takes away the manual element out all your daily chaos and allows you to just execute without any distractions.
2. How do you see the future of personalization in marketing and the role played by technology?
I think it’s very important to be clear about the framing of the business problem that you’re trying to solve. And that’s one place where most marketers struggle. If you don’t know what you’re solving for, you will buy something that won’t eventually address your critical problem.
The second thing is to be able to understand and be very clear about what kind of personalization you’re seeking to do. The teams must put down what exactly personalization means to their customers and to their business. And what I would really look at is what technology provides that’s going to account for meaningful personalization. This means that something that the consumers will emotionally resonate or connect with. The technology that you choose should be robust and scalable enough to provide that experience.
The third thing I would look for is if the technology partner equally understands personalization and is committed to it. I can’t keep changing my technology every day. I want to be with a partner who’s also pushing the envelope looking at what’s the next or the new out there and is willing to put investment there to develop those capabilities.
Takeaways
Be clear about what you want to do from day one.
Personalization is about empathy and empathizing with your end user. If you understand what that empathy means and by working backward, you will know what personalization needs to do from that point onwards.
Work with a partner that understands personalization and is continuously investing in R&D
3. How do you navigate the evolving media landscape to engage with customers at scale?
The media landscape is fragmented. Consumers are constantly switching contexts and they’re switching media. When they’re in these different mindsets, the challenge is how can we get into that realm and meaningfully connect with the consumer.
For most FMCG companies like Britannia, television is still extremely relevant. When you want to create shifts in consumer behaviour on a large scale in a market like India, it’s still the cheapest cost per contact media. It’s also effective and has a history of proven results over a long period.
But the way we approach things is that we look at it from the business problem we’re trying to solve. What’s my marketing or communication objective? Once you’re clear on the objective, you move to the next step to define what’s the extent of the change you’re trying to bring about.
Let’s say if you’re trying to acquire new consumers and grow penetration, what’s the order of magnitude? Are we talking about a thousand new consumers or 10 million? The media choices that I would make for a thousand consumers is dramatically different from the ones I would make for 10 million consumers. So, once the business objective and the order of magnitude are defined, the conversation steers towards the media.
There are three clear areas where we try to invest in digital, new media, and social media. The first is to go after niche audiences. The second is making sure that for our legacy and really large brands, we’re able to create unique and delightful experiences. And the third is to facilitate e-commerce.
Takeaways
Define the business objective and the extent of change you’re trying to bring about
Invest in various media based on the objective and the order of magnitude
4. What’s been the key to success for Britannia? How do you envision further leveraging AI to deepen brand engagement?
For Britannia, it boils down to making sure that we’ve got the right culture and the right ecosystem of people. All of this work has been done by the Britannia team that’s spent a lot of years at Britannia. It’s not that the changes happen from the outside, the change is actually being created and has been driven by Britannia themselves.
That’s the first thing. The second is to have the right ecosystem of partners. We’ve over a period of time expanded that ecosystem. We’ve got agency partners who bring in a very different set of skills. They sometimes complement each other and at other times challenge each other. As a result of that, we’ve been able to come to ideas that otherwise wouldn’t have been possible.
We’ve also expanded this ecosystem to include startups and new technology providers. That’s the mindset we’re trying to build, which is a learning mindset where we spend a fraction or a small percentage of our budgets. But with that small percentage, we try to achieve disproportionate change in consumer experience.
The third is the culture which values big ideas. If the big idea doesn’t seem achievable, we found that technology can make some of those ideas happen.
Coming to the point on AI or Generative AI in marketing, can I build Gen AI to do things more efficiently and faster? Can I do them cheaper while being responsible? If I have multiple marketplaces, marketing channels, and brands and if Gen AI can be that invisible assistant that can make all of that happen and make sure there’s more effective use of marketing dollars, that’s a great use case for Gen AI.
For example, when we created the chatbot with cricketer Ravi Shastri, where you could ask Ravi a quirky question, not only would you get a quirky response back around cricket in his style, but you would also get a personalized video voicing that. Now that’s an experience I can’t create without technology.
If someone presents to me a technology that’s leveraging Gen AI, these are the three questions I’m asking.
Is it going to help me do things faster or at a lower cost?
Is it going to take some work off the plate of my team members and make their lives simpler? Or is it something complex that I can handle it, but I won’t be able to handle all the parameters all the time consistently?
Is it creating an experience that’s not been not been seen before or heard before?
So, if it’s answering one of these three questions, at least at this point in time for me, it’s a tick mark, but if it’s not, then I’ll save it in my drawer for a later time.
Takeaways
The key to success for a company is to foster:
the right culture and ecosystem of people
the right ecosystem of partners
a culture that values big ideas
Leverage AI only after exploring different use cases and their potential benefits for your business
By Bijoy K.B | Associate Director – Marketing at Lemnisk
The Bank of Canada has expressed confidence that inflation will continue to move towards the 2% target. Canadian consumers will require further rate cuts and more time to alleviate pressure from their large debt-loads. The Trans Mountain Pipeline and LNG Canada project will create a positive backdrop for Canadian oil and natural gas.
