Thanks to the rapid advancement of utility management solutions such as IoT and new software platforms, property managers can improve visibility and improve net operating income (NOI) like never before.
Utility management services are the go-to means of organizing all your utility data in a single, easily manageable place.
Why should you care?
When your expenses for different utilities are spread out across multiple spreadsheets, it can be a hassle to consolidate the data and derive valuable insights. These data silos make it difficult to see the full picture of your cash flows and opportunities for improvement are. Not to mention the fact that managing all those invoices and utility bills can be extremely time-consuming.
You could do things manually for the first few clients when your property management business is still new. However, as your business grows, it will become virtually impossible to stay on top of invoices without making mistakes (that could result in penalties).
How Utility Management Can Help Property Management Businesses
For starters, utility management tools can help you manage utilities and improve overall infrastructure operations by unifying data silos. These systems mostly exist on the cloud, and as such, are incredibly flexible and scalable based on your business requirements. Below are a few examples of the processes that you can handle with utility management software:
· HVAC systems
· Tenant override
· Tenant billing
· Video surveillance systems
· Alarm and security systems
· Card management systems
· Elevator monitoring
· Invoice management
In addition to the above, you can also monitor where your energy is being consumed, from lighting, cooling equipment, and other machines.
Cost Reduction
As a property manager, your goal should be to maximize revenue for your client and minimize costs. A utility management system can help you identify gains in energy efficiency and identify opportunities to save costs.
You could then strategize, in collaboration with renters and owners, to reduce the total energy consumed by a given machine or process.
A sound utilities management system can support your business in recommending correct decisions for each rental unit, and in turn, reduce the cost of energy. You can detect spikes in energy usage and report these to the landlord to help them make informed decisions.
Pro tip: One promising area of utility management software is to benchmark your property against another to identify which equipment could benefit most from improvement. As a general, rule of thumb, the more datasets you have, the more accurate your results.
Make Life Easier for Your Employees
Property management has several moving parts, from managing rental charges to utility bills - there's almost no end to the mounting pile of invoices.
Are your employees crushed under a pile of invoices upon invoices? Then you should try automated utility management software to streamline your work order and automate invoice processing.
This takes the worry out of processing charges so that your team doesn't have to wade through a pile of bills or perform intensive data entry tasks (prone to labor). According to this Los Angeles property management company, the automated process can make the task easier for your employees, allowing them to focus on delivering a high-quality service to residents. It's a win-win for all stakeholders involved!
Wrapping Up
Utility management software is a boon to many property managers because it can be integrated with utility payments. Another plus point is that you won't have to deal with endless data entry tasks anymore.
You can make better use of your time by performing data analyses and identifying investment opportunities, from tracking energy usage and billing to accessing repair records and carrying out routine inspections.
Utility management tools take the fuss out of property management. When they are paired with powerful data analytics, they can be used to identify and troubleshoot problem areas.
Are you using utility management software to handle your property management business? Let us know how it improved your business and what your suggestions are for other property managers.
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