News is cool, but what can we learn from history?
3 min read
Here’s a question most apartment owners never get asked. Whose bank account does the rent go into? It sounds like a small thing. In 1933, it was the whole thing.
After the 1929 crash, banks, insurance companies, and other mortgage holders ended up owning properties through foreclosure. They knew lending. Running buildings was another matter. Lenders found out that doing it properly took specialized skill.
Until then, management was mostly a side job. The first property managers were real estate agents who made extra money collecting rent and negotiating leases. Now whole portfolios needed running. And as the job grew more important, abuses in the industry grew right along with it.
A Pledge Before the Pitch
In January 1933, 14 people attended a meeting of the National Association of Real Estate Boards. Five months later, 100 management firms petitioned to form a new institute, and it was approved on June 12, 1933. That group became the Institute of Real Estate Management, based in Chicago.
To join, a firm had to promise three things. It would keep its own funds and its clients’ funds in separate bank accounts. It would carry a fidelity bond on employees who handled money. And it wouldn’t take discounts or commissions on a client’s spending without telling the owner and getting permission.
That was the whole list. Nothing about amenities or marketing. Just a promise to be honest with other people’s money. It’s a short list, and everything else in the profession got built on it.
From Caretakers to a Profession
IREM started offering classes to aspiring managers soon after it formed, beginning in 1936. A Virginia Tech professor who studies the field writes that professional management of residential rental property truly began during the Great Depression.
Over the decades, owning and operating split into separate jobs. Owners focus on capital: buying, financing, and deciding when to sell. Operators handle the daily work: leasing, maintenance, residents, and reporting. Some firms do both. Many do only the second.
How Big the Managers Have Gotten
The National Multifamily Housing Council ranks the country’s largest owners and managers every year. In its 2025 survey, the top 50 owners held 10.8% of U.S. apartments, and the top 50 managers ran 21.4%. Managers run about twice the share that owners hold. Much of that gap is buildings managed on someone else’s behalf. As of January 1, 2026, Greystar was still number one, managing more than a million units.
The scale would be hard to picture in 1933. It’s also hard to imagine getting concierge-type treatment from a company with a portfolio that large. Atrium is growing and taking on multifamily properties with care and intention. Property management done with excellence is what we commit to every time, nothing less.
What This Means for Multifamily Owners
Deciding on an operator isn’t easy, and owners should do their due diligence. What you ask, what you hear, and how you process the information are all important to the process.
Ask where the money sits. Keeping owner funds separate is the oldest rule in the business. It’s still the first thing to check.
Ask how you’ll hear about problems. Month to month, reporting is how a manager earns your trust.
Ask about vendor relationships. The 1933 pledge covered hidden commissions for a reason.
Judge the boring stuff. Clean books and clear reports usually tell you more than a sales pitch.
If you own an apartment community in Florida or Virginia and want to talk about how it’s run, we’d be glad to have that conversation.
Atrium Management Company provides property management, commercial brokerage, and real estate development services. Learn more here.
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Sources:
Vault, history of property and real estate managers: https://legacy.vault.com/industries-professions/professions/p/property-and-real-estate-managers/history
IREM careers brochure: https://www.scribd.com/document/369888402/IREM-careers-brochure-pdf
The Cooperator, “IREM Celebrates Its Anniversary”: https://cooperatornews.com/article/irem-celebrates-its-anniversary
California DRE Reference Book, property management chapter: https://www.dre.ca.gov/files/pdf/refbook/ref22.pdf
Chicago Cooperator, “A Look Inside IREM”: https://chicago.cooperatornews.com/article/a-look-inside-irem
Goss, Virginia Tech, history of residential property management: https://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08882746.2008.11430555
NMHC 50 FAQs: https://nmhc.org/research-insight/the-nmhc-50/faqs-about-the-nmhc-50
Multifamily Executive, NMHC Top 50 lists: https://www.multifamilyexecutive.com/business-finance/top-50