Yael (00:00)

Hey everyone, we're live from Brooklyn. My name is Yael Shemer. I'm the co-founder of Tulu.

Jarrod (00:05)

And my name is Jarrod Whitaker. I'm the Senior Vice President of Residential Operations for RXR. And I'm excited today for us to share some time speaking with Tulu and our deployment at the Willoughby.

Yael (01:03)

Hey everybody, thank you so much for joining us today. My name is Yael Shemer, I'm the co-founder of Tulu, and I'm here with a very special guest. We are live from the Willoughby and today we have Jarrod Whitaker, the Senior Vice President of RXR Residential Operations. Jarrod, thank you so much for being here.

Jarrod (01:20)

I am excited to be here today, Yael. We're so excited about our partnership with Tulu. It's been a great year for RXR. We have several new developments opening right here in downtown Brooklyn, and we're happy to be sitting in the Willoughby today to talk about our partnership and how we've really elevated our hospitality and resident experience through strategic partnerships with companies like Tulu.

Yael (01:45)

Jarrod, thank you so much for your time and for your leadership. Today, we're going to talk about your career and where the multifamily industry is headed. There have been so many changes in the market, and you oversee a portfolio of over $22.6 billion. I'm sure your day-to-day and insights are quite different from what we typically see.

Jarrod (02:09)

It's very exciting and dynamic. RXR made a pivot a few years ago to go into multifamily. We currently have over 10,000 units, about half of which are in New York Metro — Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Westchester County. We're the master developer for the city of New Rochelle. And then nationally, we've expanded our footprint into other superstar regions — new deliveries in Tampa, Phoenix, pre-development projects in Denver, Dallas, and another master plan community in Apex, North Carolina. So a very big push on multifamily. And we have a secret sauce with our team — identifying hospitality programming through our RXO Home program has really been key to our success and growth.

Yael (03:01)

Let's take a step back from your current operations, because I think it all adds up to your current position. What in those early days in real estate made you want to choose this as your career path?

Jarrod (03:14)

I would say it's interesting because I fell into it by chance. Prior to getting into real estate, my first career was in the music industry. I was signed to Universal Records and Virgin Records in the late 90s, early 2000s. I worked with a lot of the emerging hip hop and R&B acts at that time — I toured with Ice T, I wrote for Dr. Dre, I worked with Cash Money Records. I had moderate success. But in the early to mid 2000s, there was a correction in the music industry where people began sharing music for free and budgets just shrunk up. So I'm a young guy in his early 20s, newly married with a beautiful newborn baby, and I had to decide: am I going to sleep on studio couches and keep chasing the entertainment dream, or pivot? I started at a very junior level as a mailroom clerk for a $40 billion private equity and real estate firm in Columbus Circle. Thankfully, a mentor took me under his wing and gave me the opportunity to go to some of the properties that were owned. I began meeting with the Tenants Association, unpacking different issues happening at the community level, and really cut my teeth with the compliance and regulatory environment in New York City — rent stabilization, Mitchell-Lama, and other city agency programs. Before the market crash in 2008, I obtained my real estate license and sold $25 million in real estate. My mentor pulled me back to earth and said: if you want to continue to be an executive and go to the next level, you need to complete your education. He helped me apply to Columbia University's School of General Studies. I was a few years shy of 30, but I completed my undergraduate degree at Columbia before my master's at NYU. I really fell in love with real estate. It allowed me to do what I was best at — communication, critical thinking, connecting with people and community — all things that had synergies with my time in the music industry.

Yael (05:51)

That's beautiful. Thank you for sharing that. You've been called the real estate godfather of Harlem, and everything you do today is very holistic — you understand residents, but you're also scaling ecosystems across New York, Tampa, and other markets. What gives you that extra special sauce to scale, but also keep customer centricity at the center?

Jarrod (06:24)

It's a very comprehensive process. When we bring a project like the Willoughby to market, this is years of pre-planning and design development — meeting with local stakeholders, community boards, and understanding how RXR can not only build a beautiful building that creates sanctuary, but also better the neighborhoods we operate in. We're vertically integrated as a firm. We put a lot of thought into our unit mix, materiality, how the buildings are programmed from an amenity perspective, and really try to design a building that meets the 24/7 live-work-play dynamic residents are looking for in Class A multifamily. We have a hospitality and resident experience division. Dave Geiss and Dante programmed some of the most incredible events year-round at the buildings. Our construction arm and operations team make sure the buildings are physically preserved and safe — sanctuary for our residents. It's a great team and we've been able to take that blueprint and playbook and move it into other regions and markets throughout the United States. And we don't plan to take our foot off the pedal.

Yael (08:22)

I really feel it. I've come to multiple of your properties and spent mornings here meeting with the front desk team and different teams. You really see how residents engage differently with the lounge, the common spaces, the on-site team — because they feel back the care and intention behind the way the building is designed.

Jarrod (08:47)

Absolutely. When you think about it, we did a lot of research and we understand the dynamic of a renter by choice. Our residents can afford to live in any building in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx. Why do they choose to live in an RXR building? It's because we have a trifecta: buildings that are well designed and high quality, the resident experience and hospitality component, and the technology infusion for convenience. Everything is app-driven. We have a proprietary app that allows you to communicate with the on-site team, get notifications for package delivery, schedule cleaning of your apartment or pet walking services. Residents appreciate that and they're prepared to pay a premium for that high-level touch service.

Yael (09:38)

Let's go a bit deeper into that experience. Over your 18 years in this industry, what has changed in what residents value today that maybe five years ago wasn't a big deal?

Jarrod (09:52)

The biggest thing is that we see real estate as a service. It's no longer just a brick-and-mortar business of here's a lease with four walls, pay your rent on the first of the month. When I first got into the industry, you had the three-layer white, pink, and yellow work order ticket — somebody would write something down and it would sit on a desk for three weeks while someone was trying to get a leak repaired. That's just unacceptable now. Residents put a service request in and somebody is immediately responding, scheduling permission to access, connecting with the greater community. We don't see ourselves any different from a five-star hotel offering. Residents are prepared to pay for that.

Yael (11:01)

That's something we think a lot about at Tulu. The same resident we service is someone who uses food delivery, rideshare — everything is instant. I'm curious: residents want cleaning, tech support, food delivery. How are you integrating convenient services like Tulu without compromising the luxury feeling or just chasing trends?

Jarrod (11:40)

I have to start by giving credit to our CEO and chairman, Scott Reckler. RXR has invested in a digital lab run by Andrew Min, with a great team of data scientists, technologists, coders, and developers. They allow us to take surveys, understand what residents want, and then build API and technology solutions that integrate directly into the app. We're very picky about who we allow in as product partners. The technology has to work. It needs to be a seamless integration. And we have to understand that there's going to be a clear benefit to residents. Having those resources internally means we can come up with an idea today and have a team build out UI and UX and have it functioning in a matter of weeks. There's been a big investment made in technology beyond just the building itself.

Yael (12:51)

Have you ever made a decision that wasn't the right one — betting on a service or going with operational efficiency at the cost of personal touch?

Jarrod (13:05)

Typically if a vendor approaches us, we'll enter into a commitment and cost-free pilot. Sometimes we'll test something at a building and want to understand the adoption, whether the integration was too clunky, whether it was reliable. There have been a lot of proptech companies that came up and were out of business a few months later. So having a committee in-house where we can look at all those things, launch a pilot, and if we see success and the company has the teeth to scale — then we'll allow them to have greater penetration into the portfolio. Tulu is a prime example. We launched Tulu in our first properties a few years ago and today we're in several thousand apartment homes — 4,000-plus users, 75% adoption. Residents see the convenience of being able to, at any hour, rent a vacuum cleaner, pick up household items, and actually recapture space in their apartment. Tulu is a great example of that partnership. It's provided revenue share and we've adopted it across our entire RXR portfolio.

Yael (14:26)

I'm very glad to hear that. It aligns with what we're trying to build — we want to be where our consumer is. We realize that to really serve people and give them access to things they don't need to own is to be where they live, work, and play. And today, buildings are like a small city — a micro city. People sometimes don't even leave the building for days because it gives them everything they need. How do these conversations look in your day-to-day when you're thinking about scaling that?

Jarrod (15:14)

We have a committee formed — it's not just myself. We have Dave Geiss, our head of hospitality and amenities, our resident experience officer Dante Blakely, and Marie and Kim on my team. There's a group of stakeholders who routinely sit together and look at where the gaps are, what the needs are. We're constantly listening to residents — sending out surveys to get feedback from the people who actually live in our properties. We take all that information, synthesize it, and create services and products that meet the needs of that residence. It's great to be vertically integrated and owner-operated. We can make those assessments and roll out and deploy them.

Yael (16:02)

When you think about hiring, what do you look for when bringing someone on to both integrate services and operationally execute projects?

Jarrod (16:16)

We actually have a checklist of pre-qualifying questions before we'd roll out a product, vendor, or service. We use Yardi as our base property management system, so there has to be an ability for that vendor to integrate within it — we can't do things in an inefficient way. Number two, we look for the company to have the employees and personnel to actually service their product, because I don't want to take my teams away from leasing apartments, resident experience, hospitality, maintenance, and operations. They're operating that building 24/7. And then three is what is the feedback from the residents? When I roll out a new vendor product or service, the greatest thing for me is to see five-star reviews, to see it incorporated into online ratings and reputation, and to not hear any complaints from the property operations team that has to utilize that technology or service. When we see that success, naturally we want to scale it across other properties.

Yael (17:34)

I want to pivot and talk about Mott Haven. We opened Maven with you about a year ago, and I know Mott Haven is an area that's really up and coming — but it's been up and coming for a while. You're taking a big bet on that area. What do people not know about real estate there?

Jarrod (18:10)

Maven is like my newborn baby — RXR and the full team are so excited about that project. Before I answer that, I'll go back. Ruben Diaz, the former Bronx Borough President, is a personal friend. I've known him for over 15 years. Many years ago, he had what I'd call Borough Envy — he talked about how Brooklyn was emerging, downtown Brooklyn, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, and the amount of traction that new residents and young working professionals were bringing to those hubs. People were not seeing the Bronx as a destination. There was a stigma attached to it. He had a vision to create communities in the Bronx like LIC and Williamsburg. The first thing that happened was the rezoning of the Harlem River waterfront in 2009, which allowed for blighted and underutilized parcels in Mott Haven on the waterfront to be rezoned for residential. RXR alongside Brookfield and other developers took that call to action and we built a very beautiful community right on the waterfront — 22 minutes from Grand Central Station — giving people an alternative to other similar sub-markets around New York City. We're 90-plus percent leased right now. The activation of resident experience and hospitality has been the highest there, even though it's one of our smaller assets. Really creating that community, localized efforts and partnerships with the cafes, restaurants, and different vendors in the area, and bringing that experience into the building. Todd Reckler did an amazing job on the design and construction. It's one of my favorite properties and we're extremely proud of what we built there.

Yael (20:14)

That's awesome. And I can say it's an incredible community. We also see that sometimes people choose to live in areas where the building has even more impact on their daily lives — maybe you're far from a supermarket or your regular classes, but when your building offers that infrastructure, residents feel truly seen. You can't ask people to change their behavior without offering infrastructure first.

Jarrod (21:00)

Absolutely. And then one step beyond that is the emotional connection. I love when I go to the properties and see our team at the concierge desk and the residents — they're rock stars. Residents are name-dropping them in online ratings and reviews. The residential experience is an emotional one. In a commercial office building, if there's an HVAC issue, people go home early — great. But in these buildings, everything has to work. We want it to run seamlessly 24/7, from the person working from home during the day to the event programmed for later that evening. The building is breathing and functioning 24/7, and it's really the people at the site level that are delivering that experience and creating that emotional connection with residents.

Yael (22:00)

As we're wrapping up, I want to ask: when you look back at your career and where you are today, has there been a lesson or a challenging experience that has stayed with you?

Jarrod (22:21)

It's a story of resilience and adaptability — because the only thing guaranteed in life is change. I've been fortunate enough to be bold, to take risks, to be able to pivot and be agile in changing markets and cycles, and to stay open to it. I'm a lifelong learner. I love waking up today, taking in information, and bettering myself for tomorrow. Remaining open to learning and continuing to have mentorship and connect with people — the same way I got that mentorship opportunity 19 years ago, paying that forward with the Boys and Girls Club, Columbia University, and NYU — it all comes around holistically and gives me fuel to keep excelling. There are always going to be challenges and adversity, but having critical thinking and remaining open to adaptability and change is what I would recommend.

Yael (23:30)

Adaptability and being lifelong learners. Looking five years ahead, what is the biggest shift you see coming, and what is the biggest opportunity?

Jarrod (23:44)

That's a big question. A few disciplines. One: there's an affordable housing crisis in the United States. Our industry is not producing enough housing across various asset classes — not just market rate and luxury, but workforce housing, low income, moderate housing. That is a challenge. How do we become more efficient, utilize technology and innovation to decrease the cost of construction? How do we create partnerships with cities and municipalities that provide zoning and the opportunity to meet housing demand? We're also in a market right now where interest rates are still persistent, so the cost of capital and being able to raise the necessary equity and debt to do developments is challenging. We hope that changes in the not-too-distant future. And then as an industry — and RXR will remain at the forefront — it's technology and convenience. Residents are really paying for convenience. How do we make the experience that much more seamless, from the time you schedule a tour to the time you move in, your entire tenure at the property? How do we partner with the right products, services, and vendors to make it a five-star experience? The expectation is high, and rightfully so.

Yael (25:23)

Last question: what is one thing you're hopeful about in multifamily that you can give our viewers a taste of?

Jarrod (25:33)

I would love to see our communities and cities recognize how dynamic and brilliant the people working in real estate are. Over the course of my career there's been a dichotomy between residents and property owners — I don't like to use the words landlords and tenants, they don't feel right to me. I want the greater communities and cities to see that real estate has incredible people who are solving problems and creating community. Some of the greatest minds and critical thinkers come from our industry. I'd like to see that reverberate at a greater level in society and the communities we operate in.

Yael (26:28)

Thank you so much, Jarrod, for sharing that. I'm with you. Investing in our cities is investing in our kids and the future. Nothing is more important than that when we're thinking about the way the world and city centers are growing. We need people like yourself and like RXR to lead the way. It sets a standard and shows how people choose that — and incentivizes more stakeholders to join and elevate residential living. Thank you for joining us today, and thank you everyone for tuning in.

Jarrod (27:12)

Thank you.