UDR, Inc. (NYSE:UDR) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Page 10 of 18

So a de minimis amount, but yet we saw the best in-the-month collections and in-the-quarter collections in 4Q and into January that we’ve seen throughout COVID. So we’re seeing the ability to get higher-paying residents in, find new residents that have the wherewithal and ability to pay as we go through this eviction and process and ultimately help benefit €˜23 numbers. In terms of the assumption, though, for €˜23, we think it’s relatively flat in terms of total bad debt expense. So maybe a little bit of upside as we work through some of these abilities to get back some of our units, some of the eviction moratoriums burn off. But net-net, we’re thinking it’s probably about a flat benefit in our guidance.

Juan Sanabria: Thanks. Super helpful. And then just on same-store expenses, the guidance for €˜23, what would you say the differential is in expectations between the Coast and the Sunbelt, and the main drivers of that?

Mike Lacy: Biggest difference, what we are seeing today is really around taxes. So we do expect high single digits in the Sunbelt, where we are capped at around 2%, obviously, with our California exposure. So that’s probably the biggest difference. Aside from that, we do see a little bit more pressure as it relates to some of our vendors working down in the Sunbelt, just given the supply pressure down there, you do see more expenses there. But for the most part, it’s pretty tight across the board.

Juan Sanabria: Thank you very much.

Joe Fisher: Thanks, Juan.

Operator: Thank you. Our next question is from Brad Heffern with RBC Capital Markets. Please proceed with your question.

Brad Heffern: Yes. Thanks everybody. Can you walk through what you are seeing in terms of demand in some of the tech markets? Obviously, you mentioned Seattle already, but San Francisco and Austin as well. And is there any noticeable impact that you are seeing from the layoffs?

Mike Lacy: San Francisco today feels pretty good. I will tell you, over the last few weeks, I have seen a little bit more traffic return to that market. But again, I think it’s always good to put this in perspective. That is about 8% of our NOI, 50% our exposure is in that SoMa downtown area, the rest is down the peninsula. I have seen pretty good traffic across the board. I am not really seeing downtown outperform Santa Clara, San Mateo necessarily. It’s pretty good. And I will tell you, it goes back to some of the exposure that we have in these markets. Seattle is just under 15% tech exposure as it relates to our resident base. In San Francisco, it’s actually between 10% and 12%. It’s a much more diversified resident base.

And so during the months of November, December, when you heard all the layoffs, we did see people kind of sit back. Demand was a little bit slower as people were just assessing what’s going on. But lately, it does feel, and what we are hearing from the ground is, people are going back to the office. They want to make sure that their faces are being seen, and we are seeing traffic return a little bit.

Page 10 of 18