The Michaels Organization is named a “New Jersey Business of the Year”
Marlton, NJ, – January 7, 2010—NJ Biz, a leading New Jersey business publication, has named The Michaels Organization a “New Jersey Business of Year.” The annual awards honor businesses that have excelled in the past year and that have differentiated themselves as leaders in their industry. The Michaels Organization, a full-service residential real estate organization headquartered in Marlton, was named a 2009 Business of the Year in the category for companies with more than 100 employees.
The Michaels Organization, founded by Michael J. Levitt in 1973, comprises six integrated companies, including Michaels Development Company, which has developed, financed, or acquired more than 40,000 apartments. Michaels’ property management company, Interstate Realty Management, currently manages 33,000 units in 27 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Michaels Military Housing develops and manages family housing at five military bases in Kansas, Arizona, Florida and Maryland. The Michaels’ family of companies also includes Prestige Renovations, a construction management company; Continental Mortgage Corp., an FHA mortgage finance company, and Prestige Affordable Housing Equity Partners, LLC, a tax credit syndication company. In selecting the Michaels Organization, NJBiz noted that "despite the current recession, the slump in the housing markets, and the constrictions in the capital markets, Michaels is on track to enjoy one of its best years ever."
The Michaels Organization currently has more than 40 new construction and/or rehabilitation projects under way and has a development pipeline of some 11,000 units. In 2009, Michaels also completed the acquisition of a portfolio of 10 operating developments in the Midwest, increasing the number of affordable housing apartments in its management portfolio by almost a thousand units.
"We feel privileged that so many housing agencies across the country, as well as the U.S. Department of Defense, have selected Michaels as their partner,” said John O’Donnell, the Michaels Organization’s Chief Operating Officer. O’Donnell credited the organization’s unprecedented growth during the past two years to the great team working for the Michaels Organization, and the relationships the organization has built with its housing partners and investors over the past four decades. O’Donnell also praised the leadership of Chairman and CEO Michael J. Levitt and Michaels Development Company President Robert Greer, calling them both housing visionaries.
"We are proud to be named a NJ Business of the Year, and we are even more proud of the work we do to make a difference in the lives of our residents every day," said O’Donnell. The NJ Biz 2009 Business of the Year Awards were presented at a Gala ceremony held in Somerset in December.
About the Michaels Organization: Headquartered in Marlton, NJ. , The Michaels Organization is a family of six integrated real estate companies dedicated to excellence in affordable, mixed-income, and military housing. The Michaels Organization has developed, financed, or acquired more than 40,000 apartments since its founding by Michael J. Levitt in 1973. Michaels’ property management company, Interstate Realty Management, currently manages 33,000 units in 27 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Michaels Military Housing develops and manages family housing at five military bases in Kansas, Arizona, Florida and Maryland.