NEW YORK, May 5 (Reuters) - Denver-based apartment building owner UDR Inc (UDR.N: Quote, Profile, Research) reported flat, but better-than-expected, first-quarter funds from operations on Tuesday, helped by cost cuts.

The company reported FFO, a performance measure of a real estate investment trust, totaled $55.0 million, or 35 cents per share, compared with $55.4 million, or 35 cents per share, for the same period last year. Analysts had expected 33 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

Adjusting for a tax change related to convertible debt, the the Denver-based REIT reported FFO of 37 cents per share.

Most publicly traded real estate companies that have reported this quarter have said they had not be able to raiserents and, in some cases, have even offered a period of free rent to keep and attract renters.

Net operating income for the properties that Denver-based UDR has operated for at least a year rose 1.9 percent; occupancy rose 0.20 percent to 94.7 percent and total income per occupied home rose 0.30 percent to $1,176.

Markets such as the Washington D.C. area and San Francisco helped boost revenue but were offset by weaker ones in the U.S. Southeast.

The company also was able to shave 2.7 percent from expenses.

UDR maintained its forecast of 2009 FFO in the range of $1.23 to $1.35 per share.

FFO removes the profit-reducing effect of depreciation, a noncash accounting item.

UDR shares closed at $10.20 per share, down 7 percent, and were unchanged in after-hours activity following the release of their quarterly results. (Reporting by Ilaina Jonas, editing by Leslie Gevirtz)