Yardi Canada recently contributed in multiple ways to the Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association’s annual conference and trade show this month. The three-day event in Toronto attracted 500 in-person and 500 online attendees and offered sessions dedicated to exploring emerging trends in housing innovation, funding opportunities and technology. Along with hosting a booth and serving as a sponsor of the conference, Yardi team members moderated a pair of panels. One session, with Wayne Tuck, Yardi senior director of residential housing for Yardi Canada, focused on the implications of funding affordable housing stock with social impact capital, also known as “patient” capital, that favours impactful social infrastructure over the traditional demand for immediate market returns. Panel focuses on strategies A second session, moderated by Yardi Canada’s Meherzad Bakht, focused on the challenges of using technology as a means of satisfying the next generation of social housing management. Panelists Clinton Reid, manager of quality assurance and compliance for Toronto social service agency WoodGreen Community Services, and Thomas DiCarlo, CFO for housing and health service provider Services and Housing In the Province (SHIP), examined how holistic technology strategies can help community housing providers reduce communication barriers, increase tenant satisfaction and maintain data integrity. Here are some of the key takeaways from their session: Crisis triggered tech adoption For SHIP, and many other organizations, the pandemic and the shift to remote work accelerated the implementation of new software solutions. “We worked in a paper environment with manual processes, making information not readily available or reliable. This added to the time and effort staff dedicated to reporting,” DiCarlo said. That pain point prompted SHIP to implement solutions for procurement management and payment processing, to help reduce redundant and error-prone processes. This step also improved SHIP’s ability to effectively complete financial...

A recent report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency traces 20 years of energy efficiency progress enabled by ENERGY STAR® and proposes a framework for achieving a zero-carbon economy. ENERGY STAR originated in 1991 as part of the EPA’s Climate Partnerships Programs initiative, which sought ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote carbon pollution-free electricity and achieve net-zero emissions targets. ENERGY STAR certifies businesses and consumer products that conform with energy-efficient solutions that protect the climate and public health. Documenting ENERGY STAR’s impact The EPA report notes that energy benchmarking enabled by ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® has grown from 2,000 office buildings initially to more than 280,000 buildings encompassing over 27 billion square feet of space across 15 building types. More than 36,000 buildings – including the Yardi headquarters buildings in Santa Barbara, Calif. – have earned ENERGY STAR certification for excellence in energy performance. Key findings in the new report, which includes survey findings from 2019, include: ENERGY STAR-certified offices are 18 times larger than similar buildings, representing an opportunity to expand certification to smaller and mid-sized buildings. EPA incentives plus expanded state and local benchmarking, performance and disclosure mandates are expected to expand certification among smaller buildings Almost 40% of ENERGY STAR office buildings are all-electric, up from 30% in 1999. The report notes that efficiency of fuel use, rather than the mix of fuels used, drives ENERGY STAR-level performance. Furthermore, efficiently using electricity to meet energy needs positions buildings to leverage onsite renewable systems HVAC and lighting system upgrades are a priority, with 72% of ENERGY STAR buildings pursuing HVAC enhancements and 83% implementing lighting systems upgrades. Such upgrades were a priority for only about a third of the buildings reported in a 2012 survey ENERGY STAR buildings deploy more sophisticated...

Radio was once a premier source of information and entertainment. Starting in 1920 with the world’s first commercial radio station in Pittsburgh, the medium grew to more than 44,000 stations worldwide 100 years later and reached 70% of the world’s population by 2016, according to the United Nations. “From its conception, radio has had a profound impact on society. It is the vehicle that brought, and still brings, music from one culture to another, creating a curiosity for diversity and opportunities for so many less privileged artists. The connectivity and community support radio offers is incredible and consistent, even though how we do radio is ever-changing,” says Jared Thompson, vice president of content for Blinder, an Auckland, New Zealand, communications and media tech firm. Radio can provide a rallying point during pandemics, moments of national turmoil and natural disasters and as a vital source of news as local newspapers decline. In fact, a radio station’s strongest asset is its connection to a community, says Donna Halper, an associate professor of communication and media studies at Lesley University: “Successful stations have relatable personalities who are plugged into the community. [They] are live and local as much as possible.” But radio is facing some stark challenges. Digital and on-demand formats, televisions, smartphones, tablets and computers have largely superseded it as a medium of choice. Platforms such as Spotify and Pandora give consumers access to the songs they want, with no commercials. Larry Miller, head of New York University’s Steinhart Music Business Program, reported in 2017 that AM/FM radio was less influential than YouTube, Spotify and Pandora as a source of music discovery among music fans 12 to 24 years old. Online listening continues to grow in almost every age demographic. Most new cars are connected to...

Amid spiking gasoline prices and concerns over global warming, are cleaner fuel sources available? Yes, says HotCars, a Canadian information source for the car, pickup truck and motorcycle industries: “The number of alternative fuels out there is surprising, and it speaks volumes to the innovation of people the world over. Some of them may even become mainstream in the future.” Here’s a rundown of some alternative fuels in production or development: Hydrogen Hydrogen fuel can be used in both hydrogen fuel cells and in internal combustion engines. It’s a zero-carbon emissions fuel if the process that creates the hydrogen is also zero carbon, such as wind or solar. A hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle uses a fuel cell instead of a battery to power a car. It can be extracted from a variety of sources. Their driving range is similar to internal combustion engines. Eighteen thousand fuel cell electric vehicles had been leased or sold by the end of 2019, with those cars traveling an average range of between 314 and 380 miles between refuelings, according to British engineering, materials and joining technologies advocacy organization TWI. “To be a truly viable option, many of the challenges around hydrogen storage, transport and extraction will need to be addressed,” TWI says. Also, a hydrogen refueling infrastructure doesn’t exist in most of the country. But, says the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that promotes sustainable practices, “the higher cost of hydrogen on an energy equivalent basis is outweighed by the greatly increased efficiency of the electric drive system relative to the internal combustion engine.” Propane Propane vehicles operate much like gasoline vehicles with spark-ignited internal combustion engines. The fuel is commonly used in vehicles such as forklifts, skid steers, transit buses and recreational...

Ready to advance your sales and marketing? Meet RentCafe Senior CRM, our mobile-friendly single connected solution. To paint the picture of how this solution helps senior living operators — and their sales teams — reach new heights, we put together a brand-new infographic. We hope you enjoy learning all about RentCafe Senior CRM and the benefits it brings: Did you know 65% of sales professionals use CRM, and 97% consider sales technology to be important or very important? And out of companies using mobile CRM, 65% achieved sales quota compared to 22% of those without mobile CRM? Everything you need on a single platform As the infographic shares, RentCafe Senior CRM allows you to: Configure and automate the sales process to guide your unique selling approach View real-time census data, occupancy status, unit rates and amenity offerings Eliminate duplicate data entry with a united leasing and move-in workflow Lead with confidence using a platform integrated with multiple elements of the Yardi Senior Living Suite Generate, complete and upload documents to RentCafe Senior Living, where residents and family members can sign electronically Reduce risks with a solution that is HIPAA and SOX compliant Access visual reporting with configurable, group-based dashboards and a wide selection of KPIs Drive efficiency with a convenient mobile app built for iOS and Android devices Enjoy the convenience of Yardi as your single support avenue Evolving functionality designed for senior living What makes RentCafe Senior CRM a differentiator? At a glance, this mobile-friendly system offers: Inbound and outbound calling, texting and emailing Duration and engagement tracking Triggered activity follow up Predictive analytics Automated prospect and referral correspondence Event management Third party API integrations Lead scoring Level up with RentCafe Senior CRM Curious what else RentCafe Senior CRM can do? Read the...

The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) sponsors corporate and academic institutions in a variety of energy-related projects. Here’s the latest of our periodic reviews of recent developments at the agency, which serves as the U.S. Department of Energy’s R&D arm. Buildings as carbon storage facilities In June, the DOE announced 18 contract awards for its Harnessing Emissions into Structures Taking Inputs from the Atmosphere (HESTIA) program, which aims to develop technologies that can transform buildings into net carbon storage structures – meaning they absorb more carbon from the atmosphere than is released during construction. The HESTIA projects “will develop and demonstrate building materials and whole-building designs from a wide range of potential feedstocks (e.g., forestry and purpose-grown products, agricultural residues, direct carbon utilization) that are net carbon negative on a life-cycle basis by using atmospheric CO2 in the production process,” according to ARPA-E. “This is a unique opportunity for researchers to advance clean energy materials to tackle one of the hardest to decarbonize sectors that is responsible for roughly 10% of total annual emissions in the United States,” Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm said in a press release. HESTIA project team members receiving contracts include the National Renewable Energy Lab in Fairbanks, Alaska; Purdue University; Aspen Products Group of Marlborough, Mass; Biomason, based in Durham, N.C.; and the University of Pennsylvania. Another HESTIA project, announced in March, awarded contracts to the University of Washington and UC Davis to evaluate materials and designs and generate lifecycle assessments for the project. Learn more about the HESTIA projects. Forward-thinking tech projects net funding Twenty small businesses received contracts in July under ARPA-E’s Supporting Entrepreneurial Energy Discoveries (SEED) program, which seeks to develop forward-thinking energy technologies ranging from revamped biofuel manufacturing, newly efficient extraction of metals from e-waste, sustainable...

A report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency illustrates how race and income impact the energy performance of a community’s buildings. The DataTrends research and analysis report shows that ENERGY STAR® scores for buildings in communities of color averaged 2% lower than buildings in majority-white communities. Buildings in low-income communities scored an average of 4% lower than moderate- and high-income community buildings. The EPA report, which summarizes ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® data and ENERGY STAR scores from 242,098 build­ings spanning 85 building types, found that: The average ENERGY STAR score – a 1-to-100 rating that compares a building’s energy performance to similar buildings nationwide – in communities of color was 57.5 vs. 58.8 for buildings in majority-white communities ENERGY STAR scores in buildings in low-income communities averaged 56.5 vs. 58.8 recorded in moderate to high income communities K-12 schools and multifamily buildings show the largest differences in average ENERGY STAR scores as measured by both race and income level The proportion of fully electrified buildings in cold and moderate climates was 15.2% for communities of color and 20.6% for majority-white communities. The prevalence of electrification in similar low-income communities was 15.3% vs. 20% in moderate- and high- income communities 9.1% of buildings in communities of color in moderate and cold climates are reliant on heating oil – which has the highest carbon emissions intensity among the most common fossil fuel heating sources – whereas only 5.8% of white-majority community buildings are. The gap is narrower between low-income communities and moderate- to high-income communities: 6.5% and 6.8%, respectively The proportion of buildings equipped with onsite solar energy is virtually the same in all racial and income strata – 1% for communities of color and 0.8% for white-majority communities, 0.8% for low-income communities and 0.9% for...

You may have read our past blog posts on the Yardi Pharmacy Network, our growing market of pharmacies connected with senior living providers using Yardi eMAR. Excitingly, that market has just reached a new milestone. We’re happy to announce that Yardi now has 500+ communities with a live pharmacy interface! It’s a wonderful accomplishment that our senior living team is proud to share. See below for more details. Exploring the Yardi Pharmacy Network In case you’re unfamiliar with the Yardi Pharmacy Network, we’ll go over some key points. In essence, this dynamic network facilitates communication between point-of-care staff and pharmacies, resulting in a higher standard of medication administration. Yardi eMAR integrates with a variety of pharmacy interfaces including QS/1, FrameworkLTC, Omnicare, Computer-Rx, Prodigy, PharMerica and Suite RX. View our full list of current partners. In joining the Yardi Pharmacy Network, pharmacies gain a competitive edge with access to senior living providers who have adopted Yardi’s platform. For providers, that results in simplified operations, reduced costs with order management, seamless electronic refill requests and automated medication reconciliation. Yardi Pharmacy Network reaches new milestone To better illustrate why we’re excited about the 500+ (501, to be exact) communities milestone, here’s a breakdown of the numbers in prior years: 2019: 100 communities2020: 200 communities2021: 396 communities2022: 501 communities Each integration has several moving parts, so this growth is a testament to our wonderful team, senior living clients and the partnered pharmacies. Learn more about the Yardi Pharmacy Network in our brochure. Get in touch Thanks for reading all about our new milestone — we look forward to updating you as our growth continues. If you have any questions on the Yardi Pharmacy Network, don’t hesitate to get in...

A growing need for transparency among real estate managers, tenants, regulators and investors is expanding the value of automated property management technology platforms that centralize operational and financial data. “You need a consistent process to allow investors to access timely information,” says Chris Barbier, senior director of investment management at Yardi. “The new generation of investors has an expectation to access data anytime, anywhere, on any device.” That’s true with environmental, social and governance issues as well. “Clients need to be able to report ESG data to investors and regulators. They want aggregated data that can be used for multiple purposes,” adds Joe Consolo, director of Yardi Energy. “Investors want access to their energy information on the same system as the investment data.” Real estate investment and energy consumption management systems capable of integrating all data are starting to supersede manual systems that rely on email, spreadsheets and other less-efficient tools, according to Barbier and Consolo, who offered their insights in an interview published in PERE magazine. Why adopt a platform that connects accounting, operations, investment activities and ancillary services? Because, Barbier says in the article, it produces a single source of the truth that encompasses “the underlying asset, rolls into whatever the investment structure is and then ultimately out to the investor, all in one ecosystem.” A similar rationale applies to ESG compliance, Consolo notes. Accurate assessments of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions are crucial to property owners’ ability to meet emissions targets, prompting many to seek technology platforms that consolidate governance documentation and measure energy, water and waste data in one system. Risk mitigation is the greatest value proposition for adopting a single connected solution for investment and environmental performance, Barbier and Consolo say. Such a platform enables decision-making informed by...

If you’ve been in our RentCafe Senior CRM mobile app lately, you likely noticed several exciting updates. Either way, we’re here to talk about what’s new — and improved — courtesy of our latest release! Each enhancement was powered by client feedback, which makes this release all the more fulfilling to share. Read the summary below to learn more about the updates, then download the RentCafe Senior CRM mobile app (if you haven’t already) to explore for yourself. Our mobile app makeover In a world where many of us use apps regularly, we know the importance of keeping things fresh and easy to navigate. That coupled with feedback from our amazing senior living clients drove the latest revamp of the RentCafe Senior CRM mobile app. At its core, this release completely freshened the app’s user interface. We’ve redesigned the dashboards, updated the prospect profile and more. This allows for easier navigation and task completion, which is critical for sales counselors with a busy schedule. Adding to the enhanced user interface, the refreshed mobile app now includes functionality with RentCafe Conversations, as well as the ability to see unit market rates. Here’s a list of all the primary functions within the app — easily accessible on the go. Users can: Add/review prospect records Monitor queue leads Activate/deactivate leads Create/complete activities Contact prospects via call, text or email (call/text requires RentCafe Conversations license) Add/review referrals Review units by status and market rates Review calendar Ready to see the app in action? Download the RentCafe Senior CRM mobile app on Google Play or the App Store. All about RentCafe Senior CRM RentCafe Senior CRM offers intuitive sales and marketing tools designed for senior living. Ready to strengthen lead management, enhance communication and ultimately maximize occupancy? This may...

American football season is here. Stores and stations are filled with advertisements for local city football teams and the community comes together for Sunday Funday games. The National Football League (NFL) is known all over the world, and even boasts an International Series of five games, three of which are played in London. Let’s not forget about college football, which is also a big deal. Especially if you live in one of the “Power Five” conferences. The Power Five includes the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten, Pac-12, and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). “Football works as a very effective marketing tool for universities and creates value for student housing properties,” said Jaclyn Fitts, CBRE’s director of national student housing. As a property owner or manager for a multifamily complex or student housing property, how can you market football eagerness and engage with your residents? Here are a few events you can throw this season for your football fan residents. Football season means cooking and getting together with friends. Create that fun atmosphere in your community by hosting football-watch parties in the clubhouse. People bond over football and food. Turn a boring Monday into a fun Monday Night Football watch party with refreshments and treats. Order some pizzas for a fan favorite or get creative with football-themed foods and dips. If you happen to live in one of the Power Five conferences, consider doing an event for two of the rival school games. Especially if this is a student housing property. For example, the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma are two big rival schools. In the Dallas area, they have their game played during the Texas State Fair in the Cotton Bowl, known as the Red River Showdown. Think about two universities...

Ready for new functionality in the Yardi Senior Living Suite? Our latest release (7.17) is available now — including updates to Voyager Senior Housing, RentCafe Senior CRM, Yardi EHR and eMAR. First things first, before we share a highlight of the new features, a warm thank you to our senior living clients! Your feedback powers each release, 7.17 included. See below for a brief overview of updates to each product, then watch the accompanying webinars to learn more. Voyager Senior Housing We’re excited to share what 7.17 offers in Voyager Senior Housing, including a redesigned rent roll, newly-available rentable items, trust fund accounting updates as well as general ETL and reporting enhancements. Additionally, Voyager Senior Housing now integrates with our dynamic maintenance solution, Maintenance IQ. Watch the Voyager Senior Housing webinar. RentCafe Senior CRM Access greater community performance insights with a new speed to lead report and reimagined listing analytics in RentCafe Senior CRM — all thanks to 7.17! Enhanced proposal concessions help you meet the greater needs of your business. Boost efficiency by adding custom forms to activity screens. Make the most of RentCafe Conversations by using features like bulk texting, email tracking and automated text follow-ups directly in RentCafe Senior CRM. Watch the RentCafe Senior CRM webinar. Yardi EHR and eMAR How is 7.17 improving our care solutions? Starting with Yardi EHR, you can now initiate and track digital signatures for any document or report with an enhanced digital signature workflow. Also benefit from a new immunizations screen, resident header updates like a customizable storyboard and multiple care stream enhancements. You can chart in care stream on non-resident tasks, such as common area cleaning and medcart restocks, meaning the system now accounts for all caregiver time to help administrators with scheduling. Lastly,...

In December 2017, the New York City Council passed Local Law 33. The administrative code and a subsequent amendment require owners of buildings over 25,000 square feet to post the building’s energy usage and efficiency scores on the premises. The Oct. 31 deadline for building owners to post their Energy Efficiency Rating Label for 2022 is fast approaching.  Scores for 2022 are scheduled to posted on the New York City website by Oct. 1.  Similar to the health code ratings seen in many restaurants, the system assigns a letter according to the building’s ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® score, which is required annually. Buildings with a score between 85-100 earn an A, 70-84 a B, 55-69 a C, and 1-54 a D. (A score of 75, for example, means that a building performs better than 75% of other buildings.) Building owners who fail to post their grades are subject to fines and receive an F grade. Building owners and operators concerned about their scores can confirm that the listed square footage, the number of bedrooms and units for their properties are correct. They can also hold an energy audit to identify potential improvements including measures to reduce carbon emissions, which impact compliance with Local Law 97, and involve building tenants and residents in energy efficiency measures. Learn more about Local Law 33 and its compliance criteria and see a sample label. Need help benchmarking or preparing for an energy audit? Looking for ways to improve your property’s energy efficiency? Your Yardi Energy Team is available to...

Employee turnover and attracting caregiving staff (traditionally cited as the top challenges among senior living operators) are now being reported as the second and third biggest challenges senior living organizations are confronted with. That finding comes from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) via their recent survey. Described as a “positive sign of relief” for senior living operators, the data suggests the industry is slowly turning the corner in regard to staffing challenges. The survey — Executive Survey Insights: Wave 44 — in addition to NIC’s latest survey (Wave 45), are packed with more discoveries on the state of senior living. Keep reading for a highlight: About NIC Executive Survey Insights What are NIC Executive Survey Insights? Introduced back in 2020, the initiative seeks to deliver real-time insights on the pandemic’s impact in senior living. By distributing surveys to operators across the U.S., NIC gauges what obstacles communities are facing and measures their pace of recovery. This Wave 44 survey includes responses from July 25 to August 21 of this year, drawn from owners and executives of 55 small, medium and large senior housing and skilled nursing operators across the nation. As for Wave 45, responses are from August 22 to September 18, pulled from 47 operators. Wave 44 & 45 findings While the Wave 44 report reveals several important findings, this stands out most: staffing challenges are no longer being cited as the number one concern for industry operators. Instead, the report shows rising operator expenses as the top challenge organizations are currently facing (according to 86% of survey respondents). So in regard to the staffing crisis, the Wave 44 data shows promise. And building off that positivity, three-quarters of respondents say they’re optimistic that more improvements are on...