Back to amenity basics with the addition of technology. 

Every multifamily housing community wants to boast a variety of standout amenities. However, essential services that residents truly rely on, such as parking, laundry and package management, are rarely highlighted on tours or showcased on websites. These workhorse amenities are a large part of residents’ daily lives, and their overall resident experience is highly dependent on the performance of these amenities.  

Unfortunately, they can also be a frequent source of pain points for residents and onsite teams if owners and operators take a “set it and forget it” approach to their management. Technology and automation are revolutionizing these critical amenities and turning them into seamless, efficient services that enhance the resident experience and remove the burden of oversight from leasing professionals.   

Speed and Service Are Top Priorities  

The issues caused by frequently used amenities can be a headache and time-consuming. Whether it’s a lack of parking availability, a washing machine is down or there are difficulties with access control, these minor inconveniences can have a major effect on resident retention, reputation and attracting qualified leads. Residents want issues addressed as quickly as possible and to a satisfactory resolution.  

According to CSC ServiceWorks data, nearly one-third of multifamily housing residents identified speed and quality of service as a driving factor influencing their decision to leave feedback, and 40% said those two items were the most important criterion for the rating they gave the community. About one-quarter of people with a negative view of a community listed service quality as their primary concern.  

“Resident perks are fantastic and add value to a property,” said Jaemi Carkin, Senior Director at Greystar. “But if residents can’t rely on the basics, no perk will make up for that. The best investment is streamlining the fundamentals to work as seamlessly as possible.”  

Standing out from the competition is important, but setting a community apart isn’t always found in offering a flashy amenity that the property down the street doesn’t have. Rising above is better found in offering quality service that adds value to residents’ lives. These are the consistent, daily offerings that encourage residents to renew if they run smoothly. Residents will highlight everyday functionality and response times in online reviews of the property, which prospects are relying more and more upon to make a choice of where they will live. Because of this, it’s important to find areas where technology and automation can make life easier for residents and truly elevate a community.  

Modernizing the Basics: Where Automation Makes the Biggest Impact  

Communities face increasing pressure to deliver a seamless, convenient living experience, which starts with eliminating everyday frustrations. From finding a parking spot to picking up a package, these seemingly small interactions can have a big impact on resident satisfaction. Following the lead of other industries like hospitality, which use customer data to personalize and optimize services, advancements in technology are helping communities streamline services, saving time for both residents and onsite teams.  

Jamie Gorski, President at Catchpoint Collective, points to leveraging data to anticipate needs, communications and deliver elevated, memorable stays. She said multifamily housing is beginning to follow by leveraging resident behavior and feedback data to drive more targeted, efficient services, ultimately enhancing both ROI and resident delight.  

“We now have the ability to use customer data better than ever before, capturing preferences, behaviors and service patterns,” said Gorski. “The hospitality industry has shown us what’s possible: When you use data to anticipate rather than react, you move from delivering service to creating connections. That’s the future of multifamily.”  

There are numerous areas where multifamily housing can use automation to its advantage:  

• Parking: Residents desire a community where parking is hassle-free for both them and their guests. They don’t have to deal with access issues or spend a lot of time trying to find a spot after returning from work. And they really don’t want to deal with someone parked in their reserved spot.
  Automated parking solutions allow residents to reserve a spot for themselves or their visitors for days at a time. They also allow residents to handle towing themselves when they find a vehicle parked illegally in their spot. Automated plate readers can also help with keeping unwanted vehicles out and speeding up access.  
• Laundry: Washing clothes is already a mundane task, so no resident wants this chore dragged out. App-based laundry technology allows residents to easily pay to start a machine and receive notifications on cycle progression. For onsite teams, this technology can alert them to issues with machines, speeding up service on the machines and ensuring that the facilities are always ready for users.  
• Package Management: The spike in online shopping and home delivery services continues, and residents can receive a larger variety of goods right to their door. This makes package management a critical part of outstanding service. Residents prefer to receive packages on their terms, not wanting to be limited by office hours or fear of package theft. This influx of packages can also consume large amounts of time from the team. During peak periods, leasing professionals may need to spend hours, if not their entire day, dealing with all the boxes.  
• Access Control: Smart access control systems ensure that only residents can access the community, amenities and shared spaces. These systems can also allow residents to grant access to visitors or others when needed.  
• Waste Management: While moving trash from units to bins still requires human intervention; there are automated systems that can help make waste management easier and ensure it doesn’t become a serious issue in a community. Automated systems monitor bins for overflow and help optimize waste collection schedules.  

Amenity Maintenance and AI  

The benefits of automation extend beyond immediate convenience. The information provided by these systems allows for actionable data that informs future amenity planning, preventive maintenance, staffing models and more. Owners and operators will be able to direct investments to areas that are most beneficial to NOI. Many of these tools have integrated AI into their systems to make it possible for teams to locate the data they need to make informed business decisions.  

The integration of automation into workhorse amenities is a necessity to provide a modern living experience for residents, improve operational efficiency and build a thriving portfolio. While it helps to provide trendy amenities to residents, ensuring workhorse amenities are humming, providing residents the consistency and service that matters should always be the focus. A “set it and pay close attention to it” is the optimal approach for operational success.  

Kevin Juhasz is a Content Manager with LinnellTaylor Marketing.