A wealth of knowledge

Two of the core values at IREM are leadership and knowledge sharing. E. Robert Miller, CPM®, 1980 IREM President, who died in March, embodied both of these values over a long career in property management. He took knowledge sharing literally when, in 2021, he donated his collection of almost 50 years of print issues of the Journal of Property Management to IREM. In fact, he attributes his early and career-long success in property management in part to what he learned reading JPM.

E. Robert Miller, CPM®,
1980 IREM President

Ely Robert Miller, affectionately known as “Big Bob” by those who knew him best, was born Nov. 15, 1930, in Milwaukee.

A standout athlete at Riverside High School, he graduated in 1948 and continued his passion for sports at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison, as a star in both football and basketball. His college days were brightened by friendships with teammates like Alan “the Horse” Ameche, a future Heisman Trophy winner. He was also married to Betty Jane Heisman, a descendant of the Heisman family—linking Bob to the world of celebrated athletes.

Learning the business

After graduation, he joined the Army and served in Korea. After his military service, Miller established a successful property management company before eventually joining A.L. Grootemaat & Sons. In a 2021 JPM article, Miller said, “I thought this could be a real career path for me. But my problem was that I didn’t know how to manage properties. I didn’t know anything about IREM or what a CPM was. Sure, I knew that I would collect rent from tenants. But nobody would assign me anything beyond the simplest properties because I didn’t have the necessary experience.”

He thought, “I wish there were something out there that could direct me on how to be a professional property manager. And lo and behold, I somehow got my hands on a copy of the Journal of Property Management. What a godsend that was for me. It was that first copy of JPM that really set the direction of the rest of my career path.”

Miller said, “Did I manage to read through every issue? You bet I did!” (JPM issues dating back to 1968 are available on the JPM website.) “I held on to all of those journals because they were reference materials,” he said. “Through the years, every time I had a problem, I could look through my issues of JPM for guidance on everything from maintenance and leasing to rent collection and staffing; using long-distance management versus local management; safety and security, even specific forms and documentation. It was through JPM that many of us first became aware of ancillary income opportunities by reading about what other property managers were doing.”

His career flourished as he moved to Remanco in Chicago, Illinois, in 1971; later, he became president of the Robert A. McNeil Corporation in California, overseeing significant residential and commercial portfolios. Over his long career, Miller received awards such as Wisconsin Property Manager of the Year, taught as an IREM instructor and university lecturer, served on IREM boards and committees, and wrote a number of books and articles for IREM, including one article that received the award for Most Outstanding Contribution to the Field of Real Estate Management. Miller was inducted into the IREM Academy of Authors in 1982.

Challenges of being IREM President

Reflecting on his 1980 term as IREM President, Miller said, “All the Past Presidents before me were outstanding people who were really involved with the Institute. They wrote books for IREM, they traveled to meet with local chapters—this helped set the path for my own term.”

Joe Aveni, CPM®, 1977 IREM President, said, “You give up a lot being IREM President. It’s a tough job, mainly because of the travel commitment. You are taking time away from your business for a year” to help support the work of IREM.

Aveni noted, “[Bob and I] were different types of property managers. I always developed and then managed my own properties; Bob provided his property management services to owners of properties. But we would always be calling each other for advice.” Aveni said that Miller was always a good resource for information. “I once called him about a question about asset management; Bob had one of IREM’s books on the topic and just sent it to me.”

In 1980, Miller recalled in his 2021 interview that IREM membership was still predominantly male, and he used his time as President to try to change that. “In addition to being involved with launching the ARM® certification, my main goal in 1980 was to help bring more women into our organization,” Miller said. “We wanted to make sure there was an opening for women to enter the real estate management profession, and we thought that IREM could serve as that entry point.”

In addition to increasing the number of women who were IREM members, during Miller’s tenure as IREM President he used the President’s letter space in JPM to:

• Advocate for continued maintenance of existing residential buildings as a partial response to a shortage of new housing in the U.S. at the time
• Emphasize the importance of property managers with CPMs to better maximize a building’s income and minimize expenses
• Comment on an IREM survey that showed the optimism of CPMs in a down economy because of the increased demand for professional property managers by property owners
• Highlight the key relationship between property managers and condominium and cooperative homeowners to make their communities successful

Expert witness expertise

During his career, Miller managed over 27 million square feet of commercial space and over 80,000 residential units. In the mid-1990s, his focus gradually shifted away from actively managing properties to serving as an expert witness in the field of property management law. He was retained as an expert witness in more than 1,700 cases and later wrote books on the topic.

Tan Tek Lum, CPM®, 1982 IREM President, remembered Miller as someone who tried to encourage other property managers to become expert witnesses. Lum said, “When there are disagreements between property associations and boards, an experienced property manager can be an effective neutral witness.” Miller felt that being an expert witness was a good way for property managers to exercise their skills beyond just managing properties but also sharing their knowledge with their peers. Lum noted that Miller felt that an experienced property manager could even help secure better valuations of properties.

Miller is survived by his eldest son, Richard Miller, from his marriage to the late Betty Heisman, and his sons, Brian and Jeff, with his devoted wife of over 50 years, Yvonne Miller. A doting grandfather to six grandchildren, Miller filled his later years with joyous family gatherings and remained active, enjoying daily jogs and walks.