Centralization Having Big Impact on Client Public Earnings
Transformative Funnel Platform Changing REIT Bottom Lines
We are honored to partner with multiple leading public REITs in the space. Call us multifamily nerds, but we are as eager as any of their investors to tune into their public earnings calls each quarter. We love to listen, and learn in their words, what business has been like and how our technology has impacted their bottom lines.
We most recently surveyed Essex and Camden’s latest quarterly earnings calls (Q1 2022) and noticed a consistent and transformative change in their respective businesses. Within the public companies, across their diverse portfolios, similar multifamily trends were repeated: renewals and rent increases are strong. Increasing interest rates, rising home prices, and limited inventory influence more individuals to rent long-term. Relocation and moves to the sunbelt continue to be strong and keep those markets white-hot.
While all of this is interesting, our lane, and area of expertise is truly the intersection of people, processes, and renter-facing tech. So, that’s the portion of each call we zeroed in on.
Keep reading to learn how our tech and the flexibility it enables, is influencing business bottom line and efficiencies for — Essex and Camden — client publicly traded companies.
A centralized operating model drives efficiencies, performance, and cost savings
Depending on who you ask, centralization means something different to everyone, because centralizing workflows within multifamily is dependent on the property portfolio, the market, the team structure, and the suite of technology that a company leverages. Spoiler alert: these companies leverage Funnel’s Renter Management Software to streamline their business.
At Essex, they centralize business functions through what the company calls a property collections operating model. “We successfully improved efficiency last year in San Diego and Orange County by operating closely located properties as a single unified business,” said Angela Kleiman, Senior Executive Vice President Chief Operating Officer of Essex Property Trust on April 27, 2022 during the Q1 2022 earnings call. “The benefits of this operating model include enhancing our customer service through virtual on-demand experience, creating more career advancement opportunities for associates through specialization, and ultimately generating a 10% to 15% reduction in administrative staffing needs through natural attrition, which is also mitigating the inflationary pressures we are experiencing today.”
In today’s competitive environment for talent, leasing professionals are often asked to do more with less. Leveraging tech solutions that can work alongside leasing teams and take care of the often repetitive and mundane tasks enables companies like Essex to provide a more engaging workplace for leasing professionals, provide career growth within specialized teams, reduce costs, and streamline their operating model.
Let your teams play to their strengths
We hear over and over again from clients that their properties are short-staffed. I think we can all attest to the challenges of hiring. Camden, a 15-year winner of FORTUNE’s 100 Best Companies to Work For award, is completely restructuring their business operations in order to continue to provide both an excellent employee and renter experience. Camden calls this their ‘Work Reimagined Initiative.’
“The primary objective of this initiative is to deliver exceptional customer service, focus on leasing apartments, leverage the strengths of our teams, and create operational efficiencies,” said Alex Jessett, Chief Financial Officer, Camden Property Trust. To accomplish this, Camden shifted their operations model from one leasing team serving each community, to two or more communities being nested together with shared leadership to support Camden’s prospective renters and current residents. They also identified workflows that could be automated or centralized and created a shared services division to streamline tasks such as invoicing, delinquency management, and renewal initiation to name a few, and take them off the frontline on-site teams.
Initially, this project would save approximately $1 million this year, and on a full-year stabilized basis their savings should approximate $4 to $5 million.
“This allows Camden team members at each community to better support the leasing process as well as to focus on the customer experience,” said Jessett. Initially, this project would save approximately $1 million this year, and on a full-year stabilized basis their savings should approximate $4 to $5 million.
More than the financial benefits, which are impressive, this also allows Camden to create a more satisfying career path for their leasing professionals. With their old model, they didn’t have adequate growth opportunities for the individuals staffing the front lines. By restructuring the operating model they’ve been able to create additional opportunities via newly created positions that leasing professionals can be promoted into.
“That was the second driving influence for us was to get people to where they’re matched up to where people’s strengths are, and then provide more opportunity for growth within that hierarchy,” said Keith Oden, Executive Vice Chairman of the Board and President, Camden Property Trust.
Proof
Funnel started a new class of multifamily tech because industry leaders and the customers they serve demanded it.
Legacy and niche tech solutions are failing both renters and property management companies. So, Funnel created a new category of tech — Renter Management Software — a platform that takes mundane repeatable tasks off onsite teams. This streamlines PMC operations AND creates a pleasant, efficient, experience for renters from inquiry through renewal. At its core, Funnel is more than a leasing, resident, and renewal platform — it’s a business transformation tool.
We love hearing wins like these from our clients because creating efficiencies for the business, keeping staff happier and more engaged, all while creating a better experience for renters is…a tall order. While it is rare that new tech will deliver a win for renters, onsite leasing professionals, and the property management company, or a triple threat win-win-win. Funnel does. At the end of the day, a win for our clients’ is a win for Funnel.
To learn more about Renter Management Software and what it means for renters and property management companies, book a demo here.
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About Funnel
Funnel’s renter-centric solutions revolutionize the antiquated process of finding a home into an enjoyable experience. We believe all renters deserve a seamless, simple and personalized journey. We provide leasing and communication tools that are intuitive and obliterate repetitive tasks — driving more efficient leasing. Join us as we help leading property management teams create tomorrow’s rental experience at funnelleasing.com.
Media Contact
Alex Howe, Vice President of Marketing
alex.howe@funnelleasing.com