2025年物業(yè)管理營運(yùn)報(bào)告（英文版）-Zego

Atmultifamilycompanies,improvingefficiencyisapredominanttopicofdiscussion.That’sbecauserisingcostsand

expectationsfromrenters,rentdeclines,andarevolvingdoorofemployeeshavediminishedtheeffectivenessoftraditionaloperatingprocesses.Automationhasemergedasacriticalstrategyformultifamilycompaniesaimingtoimproveefficiencyandscaletheirportfolios.Byreducingtimespentonrepetitivetasks,operatorscandirectresourcestowardstrategicgrowthinitiativeslikeimprovingresidentrelationships.

Thisreportservesasaroadmap,offeringinsightsandstrategiestohelpmultifamilyleadersleverageautomationtodrive

operationalefficiencies,reducecosts,andsupporttheirexpansiongoals.Basedontwoyearsofproprietarysurveydatafromover600multifamilyoperators,you’lllearnhowcompaniesaregettingmoreefficientandwherethere’ssignificantroomforimprovement.Thedatarevealsthatcompaniesareseeingpositiveoutcomesafterimplementingautomation.

Keysurveyfindings

Comparedtolastyear,fewertasksaredoneusingcompletelymanualprocesses.Andasaresult,

propertymanagementcompanies'timedecreasedthetimeandmoneyspentonadministrativetasks.

Thisreportalsoidentifiesopportunitiesforimprovementwithinresident-focusedoperations,back-officeoperations,andstaffretention.

OpportunitiestoImprovePropertyManagementOperations

Resident-facingoperationsBack-officeoperationsStaffretention

Digitizerepetitiveresidentcommunication.

Communicateflexiblepaymentoptionstorenterstoimprovecashflow.

ZEGO

Strengthenretentionratestolowerdelinquencies.

Fullyautomaterentcollection.

Solidifytheprocedureforrenterstomoveutilitiesintotheirname.

Outsourceresidentutilitybillingtorecoupcostsandeliminatetheworkload.

ImprovestaffefficiencyandminimizeoverchargesbyoutsourcingutilityAP.

Improvingleadershipandsalariescanhelpretainemployees.

Largecompaniescanimproveretentionbymakingemployeesfeelmorevalued.

2

Tableof

contents.

Surveybackgroundanddemographics04

SurveyFindings06

Opportunitiestoimproveefficiencyinkeyfunctionalareas:

ResidentOperations10

Back-OfficeOperations18

StaffRetention29

Automationhelpsyourteamshine34

ZEGO

Surveybackgroundanddemographics

Inamarketwhererenterexpectationsarehighandstaffinglevelsfluctuate,on-siteoperationsmustbeasefficientaspossible.That’swhywecreatedthissurvey.Wewantedtoknowwhattasksbogassociatesdownthemostandhowcompaniesusetechnologytoimproveproductivity.

Toaccomplishthis,wepartneredwith

SAMarketInsights

,athird-partyresearchfirm,tosurvey630multifamilyprofessionals.

Respondentshadtomeetthefollowingcriteriatoqualify:

?Mustbeinmultifamilyresidentialpropertymanagement

?Mustmanagepropertieswith250unitsormore

?Mustbefamiliarwithbudgets,rentalrates,software,andotheraspectsofthebusiness

PropertyManagerSurveyOverview

?630completedsurveys

?15-minuteonlinesurvey

?ResearchconductedJan–Feb2024bySAMarketInsights

ZEGO

4

PropertyManagerSampleComposition:

MultifamilyPropertyUnitsManaged

Region*

Units

250-499

500-999

1,000-2,499

2,500-4,999

5,000-9,999

10,000-19,999

20,000ormore

2024

14%

20%

28%

27%

8%

2%

1%

Southeast

Northeast

Midwest

Mountains&Southwest

Farwest

30%

28%

24%

14%

12%

MultifamilyUnitsClassification*

ClassA

ClassB

ClassC

ClassD

80%

22%

61%

61%

FamiliarityWithBudgets,RentalRates,PropertyManagementSoftware

3%

36%

61%

ExtremelyfamiliarVeryfamiliar

Somewhatfamiliar

JobTitle

JobFunction

PropertyManager

RegionalPropertyManager

C-Suite(COO,CMO,CEO,etc.)

VicePresident/SeniorVicePresident

Director/SeniorDirector

Manager

Analyst

55%

12%

12%

8%

7%

4%

1%

PropertyManagement

Owner/President/CEO

Asset,Investment,RealEstate,orPortfolioManagementorAnalysis

ResidentExperienceLeasing/Sales

Operations,BusinessSystems

Accounting/Finance

Marketing

75%

8%

6%

4%

3%

2%

1%

1%

ZEGO

*Note:Totalexceeds100%becauserespondentsselectedallthatapply

5

Surveyrevealscompaniesareseeing

higherROIbyincreasingautomation

Whenemployeeswastetimeonrepetitivetasks,theycan’tdevotetheirattentiontomorestrategicprojectsthatimpact

growthorminimizemajorcosts,likeresidentturnover.Thisiswhyautomationisgraduallybeingusedtominimizethegruntworkinvolvedinrunningamultifamilycommunity.Still,manycompaniesareonthefenceifit’sworthwhile.WeanalyzedhowcompaniesutilizeautomationandtheROItheyseeasaresult.

ZEGO

6

Howdoesyouron-siteteammanageeachofthefollowingtasks?

CompletelyorpartiallyautomatedCompletelymanualOutsourced

77%72%

19%23%

4%5%

Monitorandadministerbuildingaccesscontrol

2024TaskBreakdown

2023TaskBreakdown

Trackresidentsentiment(satisfaction,surveys,onlinereviews)

Administerleaserenewals

75%

22%

3%

Facilitatepackageanddeliverymanagement

76%

18%

6%

Paypropertybills(i.e.utilities,etc.)

73%

20%

7%

Manageamenityreservations

73%

22%

5%

Coordinateresidenteventlogistics

73%

21%

6%

Sendresidentsatisfactionsurveys

74%

21%

5%

Reportonfinancialperformanceofproperty(operatingbudget,etc.)

74%

21%

5%

Billresidentsforutilities

74%

20%

6%

Managemaintenancerequests

75%

21%

4%

Manageleasingactivities(tenantscreening,tours,etc.)

70%

25%

5%

Facilitateresidentmove-in&move-outs

73%

24%

3%

Collectandprocesspaymentsfromresidents/prospects

73%

22%

5%

Registerguests,pets,vehicles,etc.

72%

24%

4%

Communicatewithresidents

68%

29%

3%

Managevendors

71%

25%

4%

Monitorandadministerbuildingaccesscontrol

66%

29%

5%

Trackresidentsentiment(satisfaction,surveys,onlinereviews)

70%

24%

6%

Administerleaserenewals

68%

28%

4%

Facilitatepackageanddeliverymanagement

67%

28%

5%

Paypropertybills(i.e.utilities,etc.)

69%

25%

6%

Manageamenityreservations

67%

28%

5%

Coordinateresidenteventlogistics

68%

27%

5%

Sendresidentsatisfactionsurveys

70%

25%

5%

Reportonfinancialperformanceofproperty(operatingbudget,etc.)

65%

30%

5%

Billresidentsforutilities

68%

26%

6%

Managemaintenancerequests

68%

27%

5%

Manageleasingactivities(tenantscreening,tours,etc.)

66%

28%

6%

Facilitateresidentmove-in&move-outs

70%

26%

4%

Collectandprocesspaymentsfromresidents/prospects

69%

24%

7%

Registerguests,pets,vehicles,etc.

64%

31%

5%

Communicatewithresidents

66%

28%

6%

Managevendors

65%

30%

5%

ZEGO

7

KeyTakeaway#1:Comparedtolastyear,fewertasksaredoneusingcompletelymanualprocesses

Aspropertymanagementcompanieslooktooperatetheirbusinessesmoreefficiently,automationissteadilybecoming

animportantally.Fortwoyearsinarow,weaskedpropertymanagerstoindicatewhichprocessestheycompleteusingautomationorthroughmanualprocesses.Theirresponsesshowthatmultifamilycompaniesareutilizingautomationmorethantheywereayearagoinmostareas.

KeyTakeaway#2:Thankstoautomation,timeandmoneyspentonadministrativetaskshasdecreased

InourlastPropertyOperationsReport,wefoundthatcompanieswerespendinganexorbitantamountoftimeontasksthatcouldeasilybeautomated.Sincethisyear’ssurveydatashowsthatcompaniesareshiftingawayfrommanualprocessesinfavorofautomation,wewantedtocomparehowthishasimpactedtheirworkloads.

Surveyrespondentswereaskedtospecifyhowmanyhourspermonththeyspendonroutinetasks,startingwithrenter

move-in.Taskswereseparatedintotwofunctions:back-officeoperationsandresidentrelations.Afteraveragingthe

responses,weusedan

industrycompensationreport

todeterminethecompensationdollarsspentperformingtheseduties.

Theimpactsofincreasedautomationareimpressive.Becauseautomationisbeingutilizedmore,propertymanagersreportfarlesstimespentmanagingtheseitems—roughlyhalfofwhatwasreportedin2023.

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8

Totalmanualhoursmonthly

Annuallaborcost

Category

2024

2023

2024

2023

Back-OfficeOperations

$29,714

$20,128

42

67

ResidentOperations

$23,015

$35,496

53

89

95

hours

monthly

156

hours

monthly

$43,143$65,210

annuallyannually

ZEGO

EmployeesalaryratecalculatedbasedonNAAmediansalaryreport

Increasedautomationalsomeansthatcompaniesdecreaselaborcostsassociatedwithroutinetasks.Eventhough

NAA’snewestindustry

compensationreport

showssalarieshaverisensincelastyear,companiesstillspendlessmoneythanayearagofortheirteamstotacklemanualprocesses.

Task

Managemaintenancerequests

Paypropertybills

Reportonfinancialperformance

Billresidentsforutilities

Monitorandadministerbuildingaccesscontrols

Managevendors

Collect&processpaymentsfromresidents&prospects

Communicatewithresidents

Facilitatepackagemanagement

Trackresidentreviews

Sendresidentsatisfactionsurveys

Manageamenities

Registerguests,pets,vehicles,etc.

Facilitateresidentmove-ins&move-outs

Coordinateresidentevents

Administerleaserenewals

9

Threeopportunitiestoimproveyourresident-facingoperations

Decreasingoperatingcostsandmundaneworkloadsviaautomationisasignificantadvantageformultifamilycompaniesthatwanttoscaletheirbusiness.However,afteranalyzingtherestofthesurveydata,severalopportunitiestoimproveresident-facingoperationsandloweroperatingcostsareapparent.

Digitizerecurringresidentcommunication

Communicateflexiblepaymentoptionstorenterstoimprovecashflow

Strengthenretentionratestolowerdelinquencies

ZEGO

11

Digitizerecurringresidentcommunication

Opportunity#1

Oneofthemosttime-consumingtasksforpropertymanagersiscommunicatingwiththeirresidents.It’salsooneofthemostimportanttaskswithseriousconsequenceswhennotproperlyconducted.Zego’s

2024ResidentExperienceManagement

Report

foundthat“poormanagementcommunicationandresponsiveness”isoneofthetopreasonsrenterschoosenottorenewtheirlease.

Rentersexpectsmoothandclearcommunicationfromtheirpropertymanagers.Butifon-siteteamsaretooboggeddown

withothertasks,residentsmaynotgetacceptablecommunication.Luckily,severalmultifamilycompaniesaremakingeffortstoimprovethecommunicationprocesswiththeirrenters.Surveyrespondentswereaskedtoidentifytheareastheyare

investingintoimproveefficiency.Andfortwoyearsinarow,“handlingresidentrelations”topsthelist.

Thinkingaboutimprovingefficiencies,whichofthefollowingareasare

youcurrentlyinvestingintoimproveefficiency?

2024

2023

Handlingresidentrelations

54%

55%

Managingpropertyvendorsandsuppliers

38%

32%

Managingoperatingexpenses

37%

28%

Managingmaintenancerequests

36%

33%

ESGinitiativesandreporting

34%

39%

Payingpropertybills

32%

26%

Attractingnewtenants/fillingvacantunits

31%

28%

Planningandexecutingresidentevents

30%

25%

Performingleasingactivities

30%

27%

Facilitatingresidentmove-inandmove-out

29%

31%

Collectingrentandancillaryfees

29%

27%

Reportingonfinancialperformanceofproperty

28%

28%

ZEGO

12

Theterm“handlingresidentrelations”isbroad,butitencompasseseverythingfromvaluableinteractionswithrenters

(customerservice,problem-solving,etc)toroutinecorrespondence(sendingupdatesaboutthecommunity,informing

rentersofapackage,etc).Ifassociatesarecaughtupinroutinecorrespondence,companiesshouldconsidercommunication

platformsthatwillautomatesomeofthosenotifications.Thiswouldrelieveon-sitemanagersofthoserepetitivecorrespondencesandgivethemmoretimeforface-to-faceinteractions.

Bettercommunicationwithrentersalsoimprovestheemployeeexperience

Improvingcommunicationnotonlystrengthenstheresidentexperience,italsoresultsinbetteremployeeexperiences.Surveyrespondentswereaskedhowimprovingcommunicationbetweenon-siteteamsandrentersaffectstheemployeeexperience.78%ofmultifamilyrespondentssaiditwouldimprovetheirday-to-day.

Whatimpactdoesimprovingcommunicationbetweenrentersandon-sitestaff

haveontheemployeeexperience?

1%

21%78%

Negativeimpact

Positiveimpact

Noimpact

ZEGO

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Opportunity#2

Communicateflexiblepaymentoptionstorenterstoimprovecashflow

Collectingrentandresolvinganykinksthatoccurintheprocessisanothertaskthatcreatesanenormousworkloadfor

propertymanagers.Fortunately,themajorityofpropertymanagersrelyon

digitalrentpayments

toautomatemostoftheseworkflows.Butwhenrentersarefacingfinancialhardship,automationcan’tentirelypreventincompleteordelinquent

payments–andtheaddedworkthatarisesfromthesemissingpayments.

Flexiblerentpaymentoptions

areincreasinglybeingofferedasawaytoalleviatestrainonrentersaswellasproperty

managementcompanies.Allowingrenterstopicktheirduedateand/orsplittingrentintotwomonthlypaymentseasestheburdenoftheirbiggestexpense,helpingensurecomplete,on-timepayments.

Sinceflexiblepaymenttermsaregrowinginpopularity,wewantedtoseehowmanycompaniesofferthem.Thefindings

ZEGO

aresurprising.Almostallofthepropertymanagementcompanieswhoweresurveyedsaytheyofferflexibilityinonewayoranother.Infact,only

7%ofcompanies

saytheirrentersdon’thaveanyflexibilityaroundpayingrent.Renterstellusanotherstory.Sixty-fivepercentofrenterssaytheyarenotofferedanyflexiblepaymentoptions.

14

Flexiblerentpaymentoptionsoffered:PropertyManagersvsRenters

PropertyManagers

Renters

Payininstallmentsthroughoutthemonth

71%

16%

Chooseownduedateforrent

55%

11%

Thereareotherflexiblepaymentoptionsoffered

0%

1%

No–noflexiblerentpaymentoptionsareoffered

7%

65%

Don’tknow

0%

9%

Offeringflexiblerentpaymenttermsandcommunicatingthemeffectivelytoresidentsisamajoropportunitytoimprove

financialoperations.Ithelpsresidentsmanagetheircashflowtopayfortheirbiggestexpense,whichbenefitsthemandhelpspropertymanagers

reducedelinquentpayments

.

Opportunity#3Strengthenretentionratestolowerdelinquencies

Multifamilycommunitiesareexperiencingdelinquencyandfraudatalarmingrates.Infact,a

recentNMHCSurvey

foundthat93.3%ofapartmentowners,developers,andmanagerssawapplicationfraudinthelast12months.Thesurveyalsofoundtheaveragecostoftheseinstancesresultedin$4.2Minbaddebt.There’salsoasubstantialamountofemployeehoursthatgointomanagingandresolvingtheseinstances.

Wewonderedifcommunitiesthatarebetteratretainingresidentsarealsosuccessfulat

mitigatingdelinquencies

.Resultsshowthatcommunitieswithhigherretentionratesalsoseefewerdelinquentpayments.Infact,companieswithlower

retentionratesaretwiceaslikelytohavedelinquency

ratesover10%.

CompanieswithMorethan10%DelinquentRentPayments

57%

28%

Highaverageresidentretentionrate

(≥56%)

Lowaverageresidentretentionrate

(≤55%)

ZEGO

16

HighturnoverandinstancesofdelinquencyseriouslyharmNOIandcreatemassiveworkloadsforon-siteteams.

Delinquenciescanalsoleadtoeviction,creatingbothlegalandturnovercosts.Accordingtoareportfrom

Snappt

,theaverageevictioncostspropertymanagers$7,685afterunpaidrentandlegalfees.

It’slikelythatpropertymanagerswhoarecommittedtokeepingretentionratesupandturnovercostsdownalsotake

extraprecautionstominimizedelinquency.Thismayincludestringentfinancialandemploymentscreeningtoassessifthecandidatecanaffordtheapartmentbothinthecurrentenvironmentandintheeventofaneconomicdownturn.

17

Fouropportunitiestoimproveyourback-officeoperations

Surveyrespondentsansweredquestionsaboutavarietyofback-officetasks.Afterreviewingtheirresponses,fourareasemergedasmajoropportunitiesforimprovement.

Fullyautomaterentcollection

Solidifytheprocedureforrenterstomoveutilitiesintotheirname

Outsourceresidentutilitybillingtorecoupcostsandeliminatetheworkload

ImprovestaffefficiencyandminimizeoverchargesbyoutsourcingutilityAP

ZEGO

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Opportunity#1Fullyautomaterentcollection

Since

collectingrent

isthemostimportantoperationalprocessformultifamilycompanies,Zegocontinuallyexaminestheend-to-endprocesstoidentifyopportunitiesforbetterefficiency.Surveyresponsesshowthatpaper-basedrentpayments,whichcreatehoursofunnecessaryworkforpropertymanagers,areauniversalstruggleformultifamilycompanies.Infact,about40%ofrentpaymentsareroutinelymadeusingpaper-basedmethods.

Notonlyhasthisratioofpaperpaymentstodigitalonesremainedthesameyear-over-year,butitisconsistentregardlessofgeographicallocationsandcompanysize.

Whatpercentageofrentpaymentsatyourcommunitiesaredigitalvs.paper-based?

43%

2023

57%

Paper-Based(e.g.cashorcheck)DigitalPayments

44%2024

56%

ZEGO

20

PaymentTypesBasedonResidentialUnitsManaged

1000orless

41%59%

Paper-based(e.g.cashorcheck)DigitalPayments

5000ormore

44%56%

1000-4999

46%54%

PaymentTypesBasedonRegion

DigitalPayments

NortheastMidwest

Southeast

Mountains&SouthwestFarWest

Paper-Based

44%44%43%44%

45%

56%56%57%56%

55%

Evenifthemajorityofyourresidentspayrentdigitally,thoseremainingpaperpaymentsremainaliabilityforyourcompany.

Theyare

susceptibletofraud

(whichhasnearlydoubledsince2021),slowdownyourcashflow,andtheyresultinhoursof

manualworkthatcouldotherwisebespentonmission-criticalprojects.Addtothatthefactthatpaper-basedpaymentsare

expensivetoprocess.Betweenprocessingandlaborcosts,itcostsanywherefrom

$3-$10

toprocessonepaper-basedpayment!

ZEGO

21

Opportunity#2

Solidifytheprocedureforrenterstopututilitiesintheirname

Anage-oldheadacheformultifamilypropertiesisthetransferofutilityaccountstoandfromtherenter.Rentersoftenfailto

transferutilitiesoutoftheirpropertymanagementcompany’snameandintotheirown.Thisleavespropertyownersfinanciallyresponsiblefortherenter’sutilityconsumptionandcanamounttothousandsofdollarsinunnecessaryexpenses,especiallyforlargeportfolios.Tomakethingsworse,theprocessforidentifyingandrecoupingtheseexpensesisextremelycumbersomewithouttherighttechnologyplatforms.

Wewantedtoknowhowmanypropertymanagershaveproceduresthatrentersmustfollowtotransferutilitiesintotheir

name.Only6in10propertymanagementcompanieshaveaprocedurethatrentersmustfollowwhentheymovein.Twenty-sixpercentleaveitentirelytotherentertodoontheirown,while15%ofcompanieskeeputilitiesinthepropertyname.

Whenanewresidentmovesin,whichofthefollowingbestdescribes

howutilitiesareswitchedintotheirname?

1000orless

61%22%17%

HaveaprocessforrenterstofollowwithinanallotedtimeIt'suptotherentertomakethechangeontheirown

Theyarenotputintherenter'sname,theyremainintheproperty's

5000ormore

57%26%17%

1000-4999

59%28%13%

Average

56%26%15%

Adefined

utilitymanagement

processreducesconfusionandadministrativeburdenforbothresidentsandproperty

managers.Plus,whenthere’saclearprocessinplace,propertymanagerscanutilize

vacantcostrecovery

services.Theseservicesautomaticallyidentifywhenresidentshaven’ttakenownershipofutilityaccountswithinthedesignatedtimeframe.Thisautomationhelpspropertiesquicklyaddressanydiscrepancies,savingtimeandunnecessaryexpenses.

ZEGO

22

Opportunity#3

Outsourceresidentutilitybillingtorecoupcostsandeliminatetheworkload

Utility-relatedchallengesdon’tendoncerentershavemovedaccountsintotheirname.Propertiesthatdonothavetherenterspaytheutilitycompaniesdirectlymust

recouptheirutilityexpenses

somehow.

Companiesrisklosingmoneybytakingthelesslabor-intensiveroutes:chargingrentersaflatfeeeachmonth,orincludingutilitiesintherent.There’salsotheoptionto

billresidentsbasedonconsumption

whichisfarbetterforNOI,butifnot

managedproperly,canbeatime-consumingprocessforstaff.Surveyrespondentswereaskedtoidentifyhowtheyrecouputilityexpenses,whichwecomparedtoresultsfromlastyear.

Howdoesyourcompanyrecouptheutilitycoststhatarepaidonbehalfofrenters?

Chargerentersaflatmonthlyrateforutilitiesinadditiontorent

2024

2023

52%

50%

Rentpriceincludesthecostofutilities

42%

54%

Billresidentsbasedonactualorestimatedusage

40%

35%

ZEGO

23

While2024datashowsthatmanycompaniesaremovingaway

fromincludingutilitiesintherentandtowards

consumption-based

billing

(40%in2024versus35%in2023),it’sstilltheleastcommonwayforcompaniestorecouputilityexpenses.Mostcompanies

chargerentersaflatfeeorincludeitinthepriceofrent.

Forutilitiesthatarethesamepriceeachmonth(likeinternet,TV,trash,andrecycling),includingitintherentorchargingaflatfeemakessense.Afterall,theexpenseispredictable,andcompaniesaren’tatriskoflosingmoney.

However,utilitiesthatarevariable,likewater,gas,andelectric,

mustbebilledbasedonusageinorderforcompaniestorecoupthosecosts.Surprisingly,only40%ofcompanieswhopayutilitiesonbehalfoftheirrentersbillbackbasedonestimatedusage.Thisisstartling,especiallygivenhowmuchutilitycostshaveriseninrecenttimes.Notrecoupingbasedonactualusageusually

short-changescompaniesononeoftheirlargestexpenses.

Whenutilitiesareincludedinthepriceofrentandtherateor

usageinyourbuildingspikes,youhavenoabilitytorecoupthose

additionalexpenses.Or,ifyou’rechargingresidentsaflatfeefor

utilities,thatleavesyourcashflowvulnerableasratesfluctuate.

You’llbestuckinacycleoflosingmoney.However,overchargingforutilitiesisalsoaliability,asmanystateshavemadeitillegal.

ZEGO

Who’sdoingtheutilitybilling?

Companiesthatbillrentersbasedontheirutilityconsumptionfacethedecisiontooutsourcethistediousprocessordoitthemselves.Sometimes,companiesoutsourcepartsofthisjobandhavetheirteamshandletherestin-house.Weaskedtherespondentswhobillrentersforutilityexpensestoidentifyif

residentbilling

isdonein-house,ifitisoutsourcedtoa

professional,oramixofboth.Whilethemajorityofcompaniesdoamixofboth,1in4handletheprocessentirelyin-house.

Howdoesyourcompanymanagebillingrentersforutilityexpenses?

14%

27%

8%

2024

2023

63%

10%

78%

Managedinternally

Outsourcedtothird-party

Both-someinternal/someoutsourced

ZEGO

25

Becausethisissuchatediousprocesstomanagein-house,wewantedtofindouthowmanyhourscompaniesaredevotingtoit.Onaverage,companiesspend14hourspermonth.However,manycompaniesreportfarmorethanthis.Thirtypercentsayittakesmorethan17hours!

What’smore,theamountoftimeemployeesspendonthisprocesshasincreasedsince2023,goingfrom12hoursto14.Whiletwohoursmightnotseemlikemuch,aconsiderablenumberofcompaniesreportthatittakestheminthe20-30hourrange,whereasfewcompaniesreportedthislastyear.

Howmanystaffhoursarespentonbillingresidentsfortheirutilityusagepermonthonaverage?

2024

2023

Lessthan1hour

0%

1%

1-2hours

4%

1%

3-4hours

17%

11%

5-8hours

19%

30%

9-16hours

24%

34%

17-24hours

16%

19%

25-32hours

15%

1%

33-40hours

5%

1%

Average

14Hours

12Hours

ZEGO

26

Opportunity#4

ImprovestaffefficiencyandminimizeoverchargesbyoutsourcingutilityAP

Oneofthemostintensiveprocessesforpropertymanagementcompaniestocompleteis

payingpropertyutilitybills

.

Multifamilycompaniesreceiveanywherefromhundredstothousandsofutilityinvoiceseverymonth,dependingonhow

manypropertiesareintheirportfolio.Andiftheprocessisdoneright,eachbillthatarrivesneedstobeauditedforerrorsorirregularitiesinusagebeforeitispaid.

KnowinghowpainstakingtheutilityAPprocesscanbe,weaskedcompaniesiftheymanageitentirelyin-houseorifit’soutsourcedtoathirdparty.Similartolastyear,aboutathirdofcompaniesmanageutilitiesaccountspayableinternally.

Howdoesyourcompanymanagereceivingandpayingutilityinvoicesfortheproperty?

33%

52%2023

15%

38%

51%2024

11%

Managedinternally

Outsourcedtothird-party

Both-someinternal/someoutsourced

ZEGO

27

OffloadingutilityAP

isahugeopportunityformultifamilycompaniesasawaytosavetimeandimproveefficiency.Andwhenwelookathowmanyhoursarespentmanagingthisprocessinhouse,there’sdefinitelyastrongcaseforoutsourcing.

Likeresidentutilitybilling,it’sincreasinglytakingmoretimetomanagethisprocess.Companiesreportanaverageof15

hourspermonthversus13in2023.There’salsoaconsiderablenumberofcompanieswhoreportittakeslongerthanthis,upsubstantiallyfromayearago.

Howmanyhoursdoesyourteamspendeachmonthmanagingutilityaccountspayable?

2024

2023

Lessthan1hour

1%

1%

1-2hours

2%

2%

3-4hours

13%

13%

5-8hours

18%

29%

9-16hours

28%

32%

17-24hours

23%

14%

25-32hours

9%

3%

33-40hours

4%

5%

Morethan40hours

3%

1%

Average

15Hours

13Hours

ZEGO

28

StaffRetention

Twoopportunitiestoimproveyourstaffretention

Asautomationgraduallybecomesmorepresentinmultifamilyoperations,itmakestherolesofyouron-siteteamsevenmorevaluable.Whenautomationremovestherepetitiveandmundanetasksfromtheirworkload,on-siteemployeesarespendingmoretimeinteractingwithresidents.Sincetheinteractionsrentershavewiththeirpropertymanagerofteninfluencestheir

decisiontorenewtheirlease,it’simportanttonotonlyhavetherighttalentintheserolesbuttokeepthemsatisfied