American Campus Communities Inc

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for standing by. Welcome to the American Campus Communities Incorporated 2020 Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call. Today's call is being recorded. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. Following the presentation, we will conduct a question and answer session. Instructions will be provided at that time for you to queue up for questions. I would now like to turn the conference over to Ryan Dennison, Senior Vice President of Capital Markets and Investor Relations, for American Campus Communities.

Please go ahead. Thank you. Good morning and thank you for joining the American Campus Communities 2020 third quarter conference call. The press release was furnished on Form 8K to provide access to the widest possible audience. In the release, the company has reconciled the non-GAAP financial measures to those directly comparable GAAP measures in accordance with Reg G requirements. Also posted on the company website in the investor relations section, you will find an earnings materials package, which includes both the press release and a supplemental financial package. We are hosting a live webcast for today's call, which you can access on the website with the replay available for one month. Our supplemental analyst package and our webcast presentation are one and the same. Webcast slides may be advanced by you to facilitate following along. Management will be making forward-looking statements today as referenced in the disclosure and the press release and in the supplemental financial package and in SEC filings. Management would like to inform you that certain statements made during this conference call which are not historical fact may be deemed forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 as amended by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Although the company believes the expectations reflected in any forward-looking statement are based on reasonable assumptions, they are subject to economic risks and uncertainties. The company can provide no assurance that its expectations will be achieved and actual results may vary. Factors and risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations are detailed in the press release and from time to time in the company's periodic filings with the SEC. The company undertakes no obligation to advise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release. Having said that, I'd now like to introduce the members of senior management joining us for the call. Bill Bayliss, Chief Executive Officer. Jim Hopke, President. Jennifer Beas, Chief Operating Officer. William Talbot, Chief Investment Officer. Daniel Perry, Chief Financial Officer. Kim Voss, Chief Accounting Officer. And Jamie Wilhelm, our EVP of Public-Private Partnerships. With that, I'll turn the call over to Bill for his opening remarks. Bill?

Thank you, Ryan. Good morning and thank you all for joining us as we discuss our third quarter 2020 financial and operating results. As you know, Q3 encompasses the completion of the prior academic year, which was substantially impacted by the onset of the COVID pandemic, and the commencement of the new academic year. Let me start by saying that we are pleased with the start of the 2020-2021 academic year. As Jennifer, William, and Daniel will discuss, the resiliency of the modern student housing industry operationally, financially, and from an industry fundamentals perspective is once again being demonstrated as we transition into the new academic year amid the COVID pandemic. While our business has not fully normalized at this time, We believe we are on the road to recovery, as exemplified in many areas. Our lease-up occupancy exceeded 90%, a level many believe to be a best-case scenario in the early days of this pandemic. Our rent collection rate improved to 97% in September, the first full month of the new academic year in most of our markets, from approximately 94% in Q2. This improvement taking place while many other sectors continue to experience decreasing trends at this time. We're also receiving significantly fewer resident hardship rent abatement requests, several hundred currently versus several thousand per month in the prior academic year. We have also definitively witnessed the strong consumer sentiment regarding students' desires to be in the college environment with their peers, regardless of university's curriculum delivery methodology. whether it being online, in-person, or a hybrid combination. And our university partners have planned and implemented prudent strategies to effectively manage COVID outbreaks on their campuses. While this led to lower initial fall occupancies on campus among first-year students, it appears to have provided stability in ongoing on-campus occupancies. as we are not currently holding any discussions for on-campus rental refunds beyond one university partner, which we expect to total only approximately $1 million in the fourth quarter versus the $15 million we contributed in the second quarter of the prior academic year. Also, as William will discuss, in ACC's Tier 1 university markets, there appears to be enrollment stability amid the pandemic. Even amidst this black swan event, The resounding value of a college degree and abundant demand for higher education at Power Five and Carnegie R1 research institutions continues, underpinning the stability and consistent growth opportunity in our sector. Finally, as part of our ongoing commitment to the High How Are You project, whose mission is to remove the stigma associated with mental illness and to encourage discussion regarding mental health and well-being, we jointly conducted a mental health survey at our communities in conjunction with the commencement of the new academic year to better understand the mindsets during COVID-19. The survey received responses from over 12,000 of our residents. This is one of the largest surveys of its kind, specifically examining college students' perspectives about COVID and how it has impacted their mental health. Not surprising, according to the survey, 85% of respondents are more stressed as a result of the global pandemic. Also worth noting, the top three items students are missing most are, one, socializing with their friends, two, participating in in-class instruction, and three, attending events both on and off campus. Encouragingly, the results also reveal students believe that their mental health is just as important as their physical health. and they're open to having dialogue to help themselves and others. We'll continue to promote the mission of the Hi, How Are You project and promote discussion around mental well-being among our student residents through our Residence Life programs, as we hope to have a meaningful impact in this very important endeavor. With that, I'll turn it over to Jennifer Bees, our Chief Operating Officer, to get us started.