STRATEGY
SMART APARTMENTS
of the reasons property owners and managers are making the decision to add smart home technology.
after the tour within the same mobile occurrence is a seamless experience that will result in higher conversions.
SELF-GUIDED TOURS According to NMHC, over 50 percent of renters are under the age of 30, and over 55 percent of people ages 18-34 already use smart-home technology. As digital natives, the concept of a self-guided tour is not foreign to them. An especially powerful strategy, and one that is not commonly utilized, is to leverage smart devices to allow for self-guided tours. Online research is the first step people take when preparing to make a purchase. Take the concept of Carvana. The idea that anyone would be comfortable buying a ma- jor purchase like a car completely online sounds insane, but here they are with 16 auto vending machines nationwide and showing a 99 per- cent increase in cars sold from a year ago. Now, apply this logic to purchasing a house and you end up with newly launched SparkOffer, which is an “entirely web-based home buying and selling experience that requires no verbal communica- tion between buyers and sellers.” If people are considering purchas- ing a house or car online, odds are they are doing the same for rental homes. Prospects just need confir- mation that what they saw online is not a farce. According to Zogby Analytics, 30 percent of prospective renters visited a leasing office during normal working hours and found it was closed. When attempting to schedule an appointment, 40 percent of renters could not find a time to tour a community when a leasing agent was available, and therefore passed on the apartment. Offering renters the ability to schedule a tour online and then complete their application
Demetrios Barnes oversees operations and business development at SmartRent. Prior to joining the team, he was vice president of technology operations for Colony Starwood Homes, leading the charge in the internalization of property management across 12 states and the merger between Colony Starwood Homes and Starwood Waypoint Homes. Previously, Mr. Barnes was director of property management and technology with Beazer Pre-Owned Rental Homes, and a regional manager for several multifamily companies. Mr. Barnes holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration from Arizona State University. IMPROVE OPERATIONAL INEFFICIENCIES From a property management standpoint, utility cost savings after smart-home tech installations for vacant and common areas are between 20-30 percent from smart thermostats. Access control and pre- ventive alert systems help property managers and owners develop better building management practices that maximize operational efficiency. So, what features should you consider when looking to implement a smart- home technology platform? NO. 1 PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE Knowing when a leak has oc- curred within minutes of it starting will save you and your resident from costly damages. A predic- tive maintenance system will also provide knowledge of devices that may have low battery status and send alerts for when a unit’s tem- perature or humidity level may be outside of ideal ranges. > Continued on :: PG 96
Smart Apartment Technology
idents? If not, you could be losing out on rental retention for those looking to live in smart buildings. Outside of the resident benefits of smart-home tech, considerations for implementing a smart community solution in properties should be the desire to become more efficient, save money, and detect maintenance issues before they become cata- strophic. With 73 percent of compa- nies seeing digital and technological innovation as an opportunity, many in the multifamily industry are turning to IoT (Internet of Things) technology for their answer. Predic- tive maintenance, automatic work order creation, keyless entry, and access management are just some
GET SMART AND IMPROVE OPERATIONAL INEFFICIENCIES, AND MORE.
by Demetrios Barnes
ccording to a recent KPMG survey, 97 percent of real estate industry professionals think that digital and technological inno- vation will impact their business, and 93 percent agree that tradition- al real estate organizations need to A
engage with PropTech companies to adapt to the changing global environment. According to Entrata Research, nearly 60 percent of renters prefer to live in a connected community and are actually willing to pay more
to have smart-home tech ameni- ties. We live in a time where renters would prefer to sign a lease on a community that offers smart locks over having a pool. Are you offering smart apartment and connected community technology to your res-
44 | think realty magazine :: september / october 2019
thinkrealty . com | 45
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