AI in Apartment Market: Transforming Work Orders & Renewals
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The Rental Revolution: How AI is Transforming the Apartment Industry
A version of this article first appeared in the CNBC Property Play newsletter with Diana Olick. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
The days of landlords knocking on doors for monthly rent checks,or tenants going after landlords to fix a leaky toilet are slowly coming to an end. Technology has been stepping in to address the needs of tenants, landlords and large multifamily operators, and now artificial intelligence is turning that slow progress into a rental revolution.
Work orders, lease renewals, tours and even investor due diligence are being taken over by software and AI. As with the start of any technology, it has been largely fragmented among a multitude of vendors. The integration of all that technology is a huge opportunity for startups and the venture capitalists backing them.
One of the more mature categories for AI in the apartment space is virtual agents talking to prospective residents. This is where agentic AI comes in – meaning AI that can act autonomously and make its own decisions depending on what the consumer asks. There are still,however,just a handful of companies using that advanced level of machine learning.
AI is also proving useful on the investment side of the multifamily business, specifically underwriting and acquisitions. Such as, investors looking to purchase a large property have to go through all the leases and load those into a rent roll.
“If you’re buying a property that hasn’t been professionally managed, where those aren’t all loaded into some market-leading software product, somebody may have to manually go through all those leases and capture all the information. Well, AI is great for that, right?” said John Helm, founder and partner at RET Ventures, a fund focusing on AI in both real estate and rent tech.
Rather, you can feed leases into an AI model, and it will spit out a summary of all the data the investor needs.Thay can then load that directly into an underwriting model to value the property.RET Ventures doesn’t rely on endowments or pension funds for its capital, but instead on the consumers of the products of the companies they invest in – so-called strategic limited partners.
“We have 60 multifamily operators that have about over 3 million units in our fund,” he said.
Property Management
AI can also help with property progress and accounts payable. Multifamily developers often have multiple vendors, from landscaping to plumbing to heating. Many still use paper invoices.
One of RET Ventures’ portfolio companies is PredictAP. It takes those invoices, reads them, and then populates all the necessary data into the company’s accounting system, making the process and payments more efficient.No need for a human to manually code each invoice.
The Future is Automated
Tyler, CEO of Funnel, a company that streamlines the leasing process, sees a similar trend. “We’re building a platform that automates the entire renter journey,” he says. “From the initial inquiry to the lease signing, we’re leveraging AI to make everything faster and easier for both renters and landlords.”
the potential for AI in the rental market is enormous. As technology continues to evolve,we can expect to see even more innovative solutions that transform the way we rent,manage,and invest in properties. This isn’t just about efficiency; it’s about creating a better experience for everyone involved.